


A is A: Axioms

by Flyboy254



Series: A Is A [37]
Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Gargoyles (Cartoon), Motorcity (Cartoon), Overwatch (Video Game), Suite Life of Zack & Cody, WALL-E (2008)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-16
Updated: 2020-01-18
Packaged: 2021-02-07 05:20:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 32,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21452665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flyboy254/pseuds/Flyboy254
Summary: The MVTF returns to a world of villains! Forced to work with David Xanatos, Pharah must lead two teams into a Midwest wasteland to stop a rogue machine from destroying everything it touches.
Series: A Is A [37]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/943266
Comments: 16
Kudos: 6





	1. Chapter 1

Axioms

* * *

Chapter 1

* * *

Korra blinked as she walked out of the portal to Danville. The world was bright, cheery even. The area was a collection of small houses with a city in the distance, but that vanished when Korra noticed that Overwatch’s team was somehow the same as they would be in their home dimension while she and her friends looked like they were still in their home dimension. “Woah, that’s so weird.”

“I know,” Tracer said, grinning as she held her arm up again Mako’s. “Still, it’s cool too.”

The door at the back of the house slid open, and a green animal that looked like a mini platypus-bear crawled out. Everyone stared at the thing, until it stood on two legs and put on a hat. Bolin’s eyes were sparkling. “Awwwww, this thing is so cuYEAAAAAARGH!”

The bottom fell out of the ground, and both teams went screaming into a massive secret underground facility . A massive screen lit up, a man with a gray crew cut and thick mustache coming into view. “Good morning Agent P, and welcome  all of you. I’m Maj. Monogram of the OWCA.”

Pharah groaned as she pulled herself up. “Pleasure to meet you sir. I’m Pharah, MV-6. This is Korra, MV-3.”

“It’s good to have you both here.” At the edge of the screen, a red-headed kid poked his head in. “Oh, that’s our intern Carl.”

“Hi!”

Pharah and Korra shared a look before Pharah went back to talking. “Uh, good morning. We’re sorry for not alerting you to our arrival but we didn’t have a way to do so.”

“It’s alright, you arrived at exactly the right time.  We’ll take you to New York immediately, Pres. Martinez has decided that Mr. Xanatos should handle all matters relating to the MVTF .”

Even without Sunset Shimmer, Korra could tell that the way Maj. Monogram spoke about the man that something was off . “You aren’t happy with that?”

“What? Oh, no, of course it’s fine. Agent P, take the teams to New York immediately.” The small creature growled and the screen cut out. Turning, he growled at the teams and started walking toward a white  aircraft .

Tracer grinned, hurrying up behind Agent P and clambering in. “Oh, this is so great. How does a platypus  fly though?” Agent P growled, and Tracer’s smile faltered. “Oh, right. Can’t speak English.”

Bolin shrugged. “I can understand him fine.”

Brigitte stopped ust before she sat down and stared at Bolin. “You can?”

“Sure,” Bolin said. “He said that it’s all about how well you personalize the control surfaces.” An affirmative growl.

Mako looked sideways at his brother. “Since when can you speak his language?”

Bolin shrugged. “It ain’t that different from when I talk to Pabu.”

Pharah smiled as she took her seat.  As Winston tried to prepare for recruiting new members into Overwatch, they’d  been tapped for the mission . It was Reinhardt, Brigitte, Genji, Mercy, and herself along with Korra’s team.  After a long, drawn out session of watching all the movies and shows that Capt. Campbell had advised all teams watch before setting out for U-1923 .  Pharah hadn’t minded watching the movies, but between the Pixar films and Disney TV series, it had been hard to keep track of everything . At least Bolin had enjoyed the movies.

It was a quiet flight over, Pharah was still going over the possible recruits in her head.  Tactically , Zarya was her obvious choice. The problem was, Zarya was also a known anti-Omnic individual.  Putting her into Overwatch when they reformed to protecting the entire world, including Omnics ? Not the wisest decision. DVa, she had a better chance.  The problem there was that her MEKA unit belonged to the South Korean government, who had also signed the Petras Act . They’d never let Overwatch take some of their tech, let alone their most able MEKA pilot.  Baptiste was the only one they might be able to contact, but his affiliation with Talon forced everyone to pause . Unless they were sure he wasn’t still connected, he wasn’t coming anywhere near Overwatch.  To a man they all  desperately hoped there wasn’t a hyper-intelligent hamster running around Australia .

Some of the older Overwatch agents had suggested finding her mother and Jack Morrison, but Pharah and Winston disagreed for different reasons . Winston feared what bringing Morrison back into the light would do. Pharah wasn’t ready to deal with her mother yet.

“What do you think,” Genji said. “This Xanatos is one we cannot trust. Whatever he says will be a lie.”

“I agree, but he’s also the only person we can work with right now.” Pharah leaned back in her seat, trying to relax a little. “As long as we remember that he’s not to  be trusted , we can try to prevent him playing us. What’s in our favor is that we’re people he’s never faced before.”

Genji shook his head. “My father used to say that the easiest man to put under your control was one who  was convinced he couldn’t be. We cannot fall into such a trap.”

“Then we have to believe that we won’t.” Shutting her eyes, Pharah sighed as the flight went gained altitude.  “MV-4 already secured several allies as well, if we rely on them to keep us aware of Xanatos’ actions, we stand a better chance of avoiding becoming his pawns .” Genji said nothing as Pharah shut her eyes.

Four hours later, Pharah woke up feeling the  aircraft decelerate and descend. Stretching out in her seat, she looked around to see everyone still talking or waking up like she was.  Shaking out the cobwebs, she looked out the window to see they were approaching a collection of skyscrapers . Agent P growled over the intercom, and noticing Bolin buckle up she did the same.

The  aircraft cut through the skyline straight for a massive castle atop a skyscraper.  Everyone shifted so fast to look at the sight that Agent P had to correct the angle to make sure they didn’t careen into the masonry .

As the  aircraft settled into the castle’s courtyard, Pharah saw a man with a goatee and ponytail smirking as they touched down .  Behind him, a strait-laced looking man with crew-cut blonde hair that Pharah knew better about . The craft settled down, and with the engines still running Agent P led them out.

“Good afternoon Agent P,” David Xanatos said. “And welcome  all of you. I’m David Xanatos, it’s a pleasure to meet you all.”

“Thank you for seeing us sir,” Pharah said. “Gen. Hammond wanted to relay his apologies for it taking so long for the MVTF to return.”

“It’s quite alright, this gave us time to take stock of things.” Still smirking, he turned to Agent P. “We’re fine from here, you can go back to Danville.”

It didn’t take Bolin translating to know that P’s growl was a warning. “It’s fine, we’ll be able to handle ourselves from here.” Another growl, and seconds later the white  aircraft was off.

Xanatos motioned to the castle door. “Please, this way. So, who are you all?”

“Pharah, field leader of MV-6.”

“Korra, and these are Asami, Mako, and Bolin. MV-3.”

“It’s a pleasure to have you all here. I’ll be honest, I’ve been waiting with some excitement to meet more of this task force.” Pharah noticed that like in the cartoon, Xanatos walked with a proud and high bearing. A self-assuredness born of  literally making his own fortune. “So, is it magic or advanced technology?”

“Both,” Pharah said, keeping her answer brief. “Will we be able to speak with Det. Maza?”

“Soon enough,” Xanatos said. “For now, I need to tell you what the situation is.”  Owen opened a wide set of doors, revealing a situation room filled with monitors and staff observing a map of the United States .  Pharah noticed that along with the state lines, there  were colored sections dividing the nation .

As Bolin gasped at the sight, Mako walked up to a flat table  just behind the rows of monitors. “What is this, a command center?”

“It is,” Owen said.  “Mr. Xanatos has  been tasked by the government to collect, organize, and prepare for the process of eliminating the various threats to the nation that have appeared .”

“Hence this operation,” Xanatos said.  “With this center, I’ve already determined the number and placement of threats across the country .”

Pharah looked over the large  monitor at the other end of the room. From Maine to Virginia was gray. The south from North Carolina to Florida and west to Arkansas and Louisiana were dark red. Michigan, Northwest Ohio and Northwest Indiana were light gray. Arizona, Utah, Idaho, and Montana were orange. Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas were bright green. Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado were a mix of green and orange. The entire West Coast was a dark red. “How recent are these changes, Mr. Xanatos?”

“The last hour,” Xanatos said, tapping at the table. “Right now, we’re most concerned with the Midwest.”  The table showed the bright yellow section of the map; Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, the rest of Indiana and Kentucky .  “Your allies Lee and Brodeur, they made us most concerned about this region because of what they found in what was Chicago .”

“The Axiom,” Mercy said. “How did the government cover up a massive spaceship landing in the middle of a major city?”

“Given the situation we had to get creative,” Xanatos said.  “ Thankfully we were able to convince the major news networks that it was an ecological disaster .”

Mercy and Genji looked at each other. “But what about internet news sources?”

Xanatos’ grin turned devious. “It’s rather easy to discredit a dissenting voice once you control the dialogue.”

While Mercy tried to ignore that troubling statement, Korra looked over the map. “So, this is the one with the robot-things in it right? What can we do?”

“We’ve analyzed the signals in the region.”  The table zoomed in on Chicago,  specifically on the Axiom  just outside the half-buried skyscrapers . “All the robots and hover-chairs in use are  directly linked to the ship.  The only real option is to disable the ship’s computer systems and deactivate all the systems it utilizes .”

Pharah nodded. “Understood sir. When do we leave?”

“In three days, we’re finalizing how we can move you  safely into the region without risking your lives. So far, our safest option is to send you in with a vehicle convoy.” Xanatos zoomed the table back out. “We’ll be equipping you as well-”

“Unnecessary sir,” Pharah  quickly said. “We have our own supplies and equipment. For now, we’ll be residing at the Tipton.”

Owen stepped forward. “We have appropriate accommodations here-” Xanatos held up a hand to stop his fae servant. “Very well sir.  Shall I bring some cars around to take them?”

“We’d appreciate that,” Pharah said. “Thank you for the time, Mr. Xanatos.”

Xanatos’ eyebrow went up. “Leaving so soon?”

“There’s  additional considerations we have to make on our own sir,” Pharah said. “We appreciate the offer to drive us to the Tipton sir.”

“Consider it a courtesy,” Xanatos said. “I look forward to seeing you all in action.”

* * *

Mr. Moseby shook his head as he spoke to the band. “I’m sorry Dr. Teeth, but you have to respect the wishes of the guests. They booked a different band for their ballroom rental, we can’t deny them that.”

Dr. Teeth’s jaw  slowly dropped before he started shaking. “Man oh man Moseby, why aren’t you making a stronger case for us? Don’t you remember the Rothman wedding?”

“Yes I do, so did the Rothmans. It isn’t often someone plays a slow dance so fast that a great-grandmother breaks her hip. Look, I appreciate your willingness to work but the hotel is just barely rebounding after what happened with those robots. I won’t have another several months of nearly going bankrupt, not when we’re finally showing a profit again.” At that moment, Pharah led the two teams into the lobby. “Oh dear.”

Pharah smiled  politely as she walked up to the front desk. “Good afternoon, we’d like to take some rooms?”

Moseby’s smile was genial. His tone wasn’t. “I presume you’re all with the MVTF.”

Pharah blinked. “How’d you know?”

“Well let me see,  shall we start with the massive gentleman who looks enthused about the idea of destroying half my hotel ?” Reinhardt’s smile vanished.  “Or  perhaps the two brothers who, should you take your eyes off them, will find their way into such mischief that it would  require police intervention ?” Mako and Bolin shifted  uncomfortably . “A young lady who is already looking over my lobby like she’s debating the best way to use it in combat?” Tracer jumped  slightly . “That and Mr. Xanatos called ahead to let me know you were all coming.”

Pharah nodded. “So you’re not happy to see us.”

“Don’t misunderstand, your previous teams did help the Tipton out of a terrible situation and we are thankful . It’s  just …”

“Coming through!”  Everyone turned toward the other end of the lobby, watching a man in a blue jumpsuit run shouting through the lobby pursued by a pair of Muppets in lab coats; one lime green with a bald head, the other pink with a shock of red hair screaming “Meep !” The real treat was that they were all on fire.

Moseby waited until the smoke started to clear from the lobby. “The changes have taken some getting used to.”

Asami tried to smile after what she  just saw. “Well the last team told us that we won’t have anything to worry about in New York sir. Your hotel should be-” Moseby held up a hand and glared. “Worried about jinxing it?” A nod. “Got it.”

“Now, having established that Mr. Xanatos directed that you  be given every courtesy. With that being clear? Welcome to the Tipton. Esteban?” Everyone turned to see a bellhop come over as Moseby held out several key cards. “See that our guests  are shown to their suites.”

“Yes sir Mr. Moseby.” Esteban looked around for a moment as he took the cards. “Where is their luggage?”

“We have it taken care of,” Pharah said. “Lead the way?” Following Esteban, Pharah took stock of the hotel. A Muppet with yellow felt and scruffy brown hair worked the news stand inside the lobby. A trio of rats carrying a suitcase followed a middle-aged businessman out the front door. If it weren’t for the Muppets it would’ve looked like any hotel in any city in any world.  Of course, the fact that some of the guests looked like they came from the SG universe and others that they  were drawn like a cartoon made all the difference in the world .

One elevator ride later, and the teams were up in their suites. “Here we are. Each suite has two bedrooms, so you’ll all be  perfectly comfortable.” Esteban smiled as he handed the cards to Pharah. “If you need anything,  simply call down to the lobby. Presuming the phones are working.”

Brigitte stopped as she was walking in. “Why wouldn’t the phones work?”

Esteban shrugged. “ Apparently Fozzy got a call from the 4-H club, and the phones all got filled with milk.” Everyone took a moment to stare at Esteban before the bellhop smiled and went back to the elevators.

Korra sighed as she walked into the suite. “Great, a world where phones are full of milk and little puppet-things run around with people.” She fell onto the nearest couch. “Is it too late to get out of this one?”

Reinhardt laughed. “Come Korra, are you telling me that you’re not the least bit curious to see what the rest of this world has to offer?”

“For now let’s focus on what Campbell recommended we do,” Pharah said, grabbing the phone in the room.  Holding it out for a moment to make sure nothing shot out of it, she  carefully held it up to her ear and dialed the number Campbell had left .

“ 23rd Precinct, Det. Elisa Maza. ”

“Det. Maza, my name is Pharah. We have a mutual group of friends who assisted in resolving a matter involving the Sykes family.”

The line was silent for a few seconds. “ I see. Can you get to the 23rd tonight,  just after sunset? ”

“I can.”

“ Don’t bring everyone,  just one or two. See you soon. ”

Hanging up, Pharah looked over the teams and nodded. “Well, we have a few hours to kill. Who wants to try the real Ray’s Pizza?” 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

* * *

Korra cringed as she passed by the sight of a pile of black garbage bags piled up by the curb. “Man, and I thought Republic City was having a rough time.”

Tracer nodded. “Yes, this was New York, circa the 1980s.” 

Pharah didn’t argue, the smell alone reminded her of the worst slums in Cairo. It was her, Tracer, Asami, and Korra moving to the 23rd. They’d called a cab, since Xanatos was paying for their stay they figured the hotel could add it to their bill.  The precinct was an older building, brick and masonry compared to the concrete and steel they’d seen near the Tipton . Atop was a massive clocktower lit up in the coming twilight. “Looks big,” Korra said. “How do we get in though?”

“You follow me.” Pharah saw a woman standing in the doorway, with a red jacket and long black hair. “MVTF?” Pharah nodded. “Maza. This way.”

The four followed Elisa inside, dodging past officers on their shift and the people they had to deal with. Some were victims, old women wearing babushkas or young men with black eyes.  The rest were the perps, women in tight leather miniskirts or thugs in baggy clothes and colors to mark their allegiance .

Elisa led them to a stairway, and opening it up waited for them all to get inside before speaking again. “Where’s Campbell?”

“Priority mission in his own dimension,” Pharah said. “He left explicit instructions on what to do while we’re here. Especially to not trust Xanatos.”

“Good,” Elisa said, smiling as she led them up the stairs. “So, what’re you all here for?”

“The disaster in Chicago,” Asami said. “Whatever you heard from the government is a lie, it’s worse than they’ve told you.”

“I’d believe it,” Elisa said.  “One day the Chicago PD went quiet, the feds said that it was because they were trying to handle a toxic chemical incident . Thing is, a few of the guys in the precinct had buddies in Chicago. Getting told they were handling a disaster didn’t tell us anything. Don’t suppose you can tell me what happened?”

Tracer grinned. “Would you believe a spaceship came from out of a time warp and landed in the middle of the city?”

Elisa stopped and sighed. “I guess it shouldn't surprise me. So you think you can stop it?” She noticed that no one gave her an answer. “Thanks guys,  really appreciate the confidence I’m hearing.”

Korra glared at Elisa. “Sorry, not exactly used to dealing with giant spaceships yet. We  just figured out airplanes and gas heating.”

Elisa nodded, leading them up the stairs to the clocktower. “So, did they tell you about who you’d be working with here?”

Korra started counting on her fingers. “You, some other cops, Agent P, Phineas and Ferb if we got desperate.”

Elisa turned and grinned. “Guess they wanted the Clan to surprise you.”

“They did mention we would be working with a group called the Manhattan Clan,” Pharah said. “Are they a fraternal group? A secret society?”

“Little bit of both.” Opening the door at the top of the stairs, Elisa motioned for the group to come inside.  Pharah saw a small room under the gears of the clock, a kitchen set to the side with a small leather recliner in the center in front of a TV .  Against the far wall was a desk covered in electronic parts, and close by was a large bookshelf filled with tomes and novels .  There was no one inside though, and Pharah saw Elisa head for a staircase leading up to the parapet around the clocktower .

Walking out, Pharah saw a trio of men grinning at her as the sun started to set in the distance. Pharah wanted to ask what was going on when she noticed that the parapet had five statues on it.  Massive gargoyles that fit more atop the battlements of Xanatos’ castle or a medieval cathedral than a police station in Manhattan . “What are we doing up-”

The sun finally dipped below the horizon, and as it did Pharah saw something. Cracks starting to form on the gargoyles. Light shot out of the cracks, spreading like faults in an earthquake.  As she watched the closest gargoyle shattered to reveal a beast of flesh and muscle roaring out into the night with glowing white eyes . Along the parapet they awoke, roaring and crying out into the night. Massive claws and sweeping wings flexed and shuddered as the four cops watched. They looked at it all like they were meeting their friends at the start of the day.

Looking back, she saw that Tracer, Asami, and Korra all wore the same expression she had: Shock and awe. As the gargoyles stepped down from the parapet, they walked up to Elisa. “Evening Goliath. Good day’s sleep?”

“ Thankfully ,” Goliath said, stroking Elisa’s hair before turning to Pharah. “Who are these women?”

“MVTF,” Elisa said. “Didn’t get any names yet, they called from the Tipton.”

Pharah nodded, still trying to get over the walking talking masonry. “P-Pharah, team lead. This is Tracer, Asami, and Korra.” Tracer gave a feeble wave. Asami squeaked out something. Korra stared open mouthed.

Goliath grinned. “You’d think that traveling the worlds and realms as they do, our waking up in the morning wouldn’t be that shocking.”

Pharah groaned. “ I think that was Capt. Campbell’s plan. It’s nice to meet you Goliath.”

Shaking Pharah’s hand, Goliath moved to motion to his brothers. “My clan; Lexington, Brooklyn, Broadway, and Bronx.  We owe the MVTF a great debt for their aid in helping us remain free of Xanatos, in return for his freedom he has sworn to not interfere with us again . We will do whatever we can to help you in your missions.”

“We’re thankful that you are,” Pharah said, starting to get over her shock. “Campbell told us never to trust Xanatos.”

“A wise decision,” Goliath said, leading the way back into the clocktower.  “Despite the agreement Xanatos will do whatever he thinks necessary to secure his own power . Which is why you’re here now.”

“He wants them to go to Chicago,” Elisa said. “The city went dark because some spaceship landed in the middle of it.”

“And it’s turning everything around it into a wasteland,” Tracer said. “Don’t suppose you’d know anything about that?”

Goliath shook his head. “I know nothing about the nation outside New York that can help. What I do know is that if Xanatos is sending you to Chicago, there is something in this space-ship he desires.”

“It may be the robotics,” Pharah said. “The ship contains many hundreds of robots, all built to serve the comforts of mankind. By seizing this technology Xanatos could make billions of dollars in weeks.”

“That would be in line with him,” Elisa said. “Whatever gets him more money and influence would be the exact thing he’d want from a wasteland. What’d he say about it?”

“In three days he’ll send us in a vehicle convoy to the Axiom,” Pharah said. “He didn’t say with who or how many would  accompany . All he did let us know is that Pres. Martinez has put him in the position to stabilize the nation.”

Goliath growled. “Then the president has sold his nation to Xanatos.”

“Well there’s still time to figure out a way to sabotage Xanatos’ efforts.”  Pharah took out a map of the US from one of her pockets and started drawing lines from what she remembered on the screen . This is roughly what he showed us. Can you tell us anything?”

Elisa shook her head. “I can ask around the precinct, see if anyone has any friends or numbers they can call. It doesn’t tell us what is what on this map though.”

“Wait,” Tracer said. “This section here, isn’t this Detroit?” Elisa nodded. “Of course. This must be Abraham Kane!”

“The series  Motorcity, ” Pharah said. “ Maybe that’s what Xanatos wants, to box in Kane’s company and remain a dominant power.”

“It is rather easy to imagine,” Goliath mused. “This may be what Xanatos wants, except there’s no reason for him not to overrun Kane’s hold on power. He never goes after an enemy for the sake of humiliating them. What does Kane have that Xanatos doesn’t?”

“Surveillance,” Pharah said. “Kane has technologies that allow him to  essentially turn anyone who uses it into a new piece of data for Kane to use.”

“Something that Xanatos would do anything to get,” Elisa said. “Is Kane a problem too?”

“He’s convinced he’s making a safer world by taking away people’s privacy,” Asami said. “Everyone lets him because they think their lives are easier because of it. In this world it’s likely the only ones who were fighting back against him are dead.”

“Then we should take him out before he can grow in power.” Pharah smiled as she leaned over the map. “I’m starting to see a plan.”

* * *

Reinhardt was  barely sweating as he worked in the Tipton’s gym.  Brigitte stood over him ready to grab the weights  just in case, but both of them knew that there was no chance of Reinhardt having any trouble with weights meant for travelling businessmen and families on holiday .  Easily racking the bar, he rose and took a drink of water.

“You’re not putting yourself into your workout old man,” Brigitte said. “Something’s on your mind,  just get it out before I fight it out of you.”

Reinhardt laughed at his squire. “You think you could take me now, Brigitte?” The hard glare that could strip the cement off a rebar column. Sighing, Reinhardt stood and started walking from the gym. “You’re right, I am troubled. What we’ve found out of the past.”  Barely making it out the door and passing a pair of confused businessmen, Reinhardt tromped toward the elevators with his head low . “They told me my leaving Overwatch had to happen, that I needed to go for the good of the organization. Now we’re told that my leaving was the beginning of the end?”

“They wouldn’t have know that at the time Reinhardt,” Brigitte argued as Reinhardt hit the floor button. “You shouldn’t blame yourself either. You had no idea that your  being forced out would be part of what destroyed Overwatch.”

“Shouldn’t I?” Reinhardt shook his head as the elevator stopped and opened. A man and woman started to walk in, realized Reinhardt was there, and went back outside. “I knew that tensions were high between Jack and Gabriel. Blackwatch had become more intense, laxer with how it took action. I had a chance to speak against it, and missed that chance because I was so focused on being a hero.” He sighed and leaned his arm against the wall. “It’s as if I learned nothing from Balderich’s sacrifice.”

“You couldn’t have fought all the governments that were backing Overwatch,” Brigitte said, though her glare didn’t slack .  “If this conspiracy is as powerful and dangerous as Rainbow told us they would have removed you in some other way .”

Reinhardt grunted as shook the elevator as he stepped off on the floor of the suite. “What of Ana? She faked her own death, abandoned her daughter. She didn’t know about the conspiracy and still did all this.” Reaching into his pocket, he fished about for his keycard. “What did Overwatch  accomplish in the end?”

Brigitte stood in front of the door. “You’re not going in there talking like this old man. You’re tearing yourself apart over this, so how do you think Fareeha must be feeling right now? Even if she’s able to accept that her mother had reasons, what about how she feels? Or your feelings?” Reinhardt groaned and turned away. “Don’t turn away from me on this one.”

“I can’t turn to anyone,” Reinhardt said. “You’re too young, you don’t understand. Your father kept himself away from the power struggles in Overwatch. The others here, they wouldn’t have the answers I seek.”

“Then go to Rainbow,” Brigitte said. “They’ve had the answers so far, they might have something more.”

“They already gave us everything they said they could find.” Reinhardt sighed and leaned against the wall. “All we have at this point is what we find for ourselves.”

Brigitte shuddered. She  was used to Reinhardt  being subdued after a fight, or remembering the past. This was the first time she’d seen him without a glimmer in his eye that said he knew there was hope.  They were completely blank now, like they  were drained of everything that Reinhardt held dear . “Well,  maybe we  just need to get some rest then. C’mon, let’s wash up.” Shaking his head, Reinhardt swiped the keycard and led the way in.

Mako and Bolin watched TV, both of them watching in awe as stock action movie sounds drifted out. Mercy looked out on the city as Genji sharpened his blade. “Oh, hey guys.” Bolin waved from the couch. “What’s going on?”

“ Just finished our workout,” Brigitte said. “Any word from Fareeha yet?”

“Nothing,” Mako said, staring at the movie in visible confusion. “Hey, are all movers so disjointed? It started in a place called Miami and now we’re in a place called Portland.”

Brigitte smiled as she got some fresh water from the sink.  “As the technology and logistics advanced directors realized they could tell all kinds of stories . In a time, you’ll have movies where the story starts in Republic City and ends in the Southern Water Tribe.”

Bolin smiled, but Mako shook his head. “Great, now Varrick’s movers are gonna be even more expensive to see.” Bolin pouted at his brother, who  playfully threw a pillow at Bolin’s face.

Brigitte smiled, but it shrank when she saw Reinhardt  silently slip into his room without saying anything .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. Sorry the new chapter took so long as was so short. I've had a lot of my plate this past month, getting married will do that to you.
> 
> Remember to leave your like, critiques, and comments! More to come!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

* * *

The team had gathered up in a shipping warehouse in Yonkers before dawn, helping a group of mercenaries readying themselves for the trip. Xanatos’ security department had hired them on, and so far Pharah had been less than impressed with what she’d seen. They carried themselves like tough guys, strapping on their armor and checking their weapons with no real sense of how vital the things they were doing were. The only thing that might help them were the weapons they carried, laser rifles and advanced body armor that would help them if they got caught in a crossfire. It didn’t help that once again, the mercenaries were a mix of “live-action”, “animated”, and “digital” characters clashing with each other.

Fox Xanatos observed everything, watching as supplies  were loaded  and final checks made. “Remember, Detroit is a secondary  objective . As long as the Axiom is either disabled or destroyed, we’ll have another part of the nation secured.”

“_And another feather in Xanatos’ over-plumed cap._” Nodding, Pharah checked her won lacrima. Ammo, food, medical supplies, and her armor segments.  Fairy Tail had argued that they could make lacrima that could put their armor on with a touch, but Pharah and Reinhardt had declined  . Their equipment was precision engineered and needed checks with every use.  Even with the ability of the lacrima to preserve an object inside it, they didn’t want to risk the gear falling into disrepair  . “These men  are trained , correct?”

“They’ve all ex-military, trained for any situation.” Still smiling, Fox handed a map to Pharah. “In case you lose signal. Take Rt. 80 and 90. When you get to Toledo, take North 75 to get to Detroit. Get back on 90 once you finish with Kane.”

“Understood.” She took one more look at Fox, making sure that the woman wasn’t about to try anything. “Your husband’s work for the president, is it giving any profit to his company?”

Fox shook her head. “He’s a corporate king, but he’s not a fool. He understands that for his company to be profitable there needs to be a nation left to profit off of.”

“Functional and pragmatic,” Pharah said, face hard. “A true corporate leader.”

“Yes, and your key to finding out why our world is the way it is.” Fox smirked at Pharah. “You can judge us based on what you’ve seen, but the fact is you don’t  truly  know us. We’re as concerned with the nation’s future as you are to figure out what happened. Given that we  were told  your teams are professionals, we took that to mean you could be impartial.”

Pharah couldn’t deflect the blow. Fox was right, all they knew were what the shows the platoon had left had told them. It didn’t show David and Fox Xanatos in private with their son, or the situation in his company. Worse, Xanatos wasn’t a villain. Amoral, but Pharah knew from history that such an attitude was a necessity in some situations. He was the kind of man that could correct what had happened in this universe, and that was the problem. He could right this sinking ship, then leave the captain to drown as he took the helm. That one note still rang out in her mind from Campbell: Don’t trust Xanatos. As far as she  was concerned , that extended to his wife and anyone associated with him.

Mako came over her radio. “Everyone’s packed and ready Pharah, we're waiting on you.”

“Time to go,” Pharah said, turning to shake Fox’s hand. “I hope you have a plan for the survivors of the Axiom once we disable the ship.”

“We’ve already prepared for the refugees,” Fox said. “Good luck, you’ll need it.”

Pharah said nothing to the barely-dressed threat as she went for the lead vehicle. She’d  been surprised  when they came in a series of Humvees, but then it was a universe based on Disney properties. As long as the vehicles  were made  to fit the situation they were going to be in. In this case, painted a light gray with the stylized X of Xanatos Enterprises.  There were ten Humvees total, civilian models with covered beds loaded with camping supplies for when they finally hit the wasteland that had become Illinois  .  They looked like gray boxes on wheels, and Pharah had a vague suspicion that they were terrible on mileage .

Settling into the front passenger seat, she glanced at the mercenary driving before grabbing the radio . “Radio check, radio check, this is Paradox 1, all trucks check in.”

Tracer went first. “Paradox 2, five by five.”

Asami next. “Paradox 3, we read you.”

Mako after. “Paradox 4, clear here.”

Finally, Reinhardt. “Paradox 5, your signal is clear.”

Looking back to Mercy, Pharah got a nod as the rest of the trucks radioed in. “Alright, it will take us roughly ten hours to reach Detroit. Once we’re in the city limits we’re find a place to hold and investigate the area. Do not engage any targets without my explicit permission, is that understood?” More affirmatives. “Alright, all vehicles remain single file. Move out.”

As the trucks rumbled out of the shipping yard, Pharah gave a final glance to Fox. The woman was still smiling, giving a wave in the early sunlight with a hand clutched in a jacket pocket.

With the convoy away, Fox pulled her cell phone from her jacket and dialed. “They’re off.”

“Excellent,” Xanatos said. “Take the other team and get to Maine, once they’re in place you can take some time for yourself.”

“I was hoping you’d say that,” Fox said, smiling. “I need to return the favor to Anton for what he did to our family.”

Fox could hear the grin spread across Xanatos’ face over the phone. “I love it when you flirt.”

* * *

The ride out of Yonkers turned dull quick, that was the trade-off of the American highway system. Designed to get trucks and military vehicles from one end of the country to another. Being entertained? That was on the people doing the driving.

Korra noticed the driver turn to her. “So, you gonna start entertaining us any time soon?”

Korra and Asami looked at each other. “Uh, what?”

“Well you’re toons,” the driver said. “C’mon, sing a song or something. We’re gonna be on the road for ten hours.”

Korra took a second, trying to figure out what the man was talking about. “Uh, what do you mean I’m a toon?”

The driver rolled his eyes. “Great, you’re one of those Red Car ones aren’t you? Look, fine, I’m sorry you lost Toontown, happy?”

Asami leaned in. “Are you forgetting we’re not from this dimension on purpose?”

The driver blinked. “Wait, hang on. You’re toons, but you don’t sing and dance?”

Korra stared at the driver. “Wait, what about Xanatos? He doesn’t sing and dance.”

The driver shrugged. “Well yeah, but he’s not that type of toon. You guys aren’t either then?”

Asami nodded, like she was explaining instructions to a child. “No, we don’t sing and dance.” She looked to Korra  uncomfortably  .  They’d seen the Roger Rabbit movie, along with the implication that Roger Rabbit and his wife were dead by the platoon  . What  was unexpected  was for some of the people in this world to act like they were toons.

The man turned and scoffed. “Yeah, you two aren’t toons. And I’m Mickey Mouse.” The merc in the back sitting next to Asami laughed, his “digital” face twisted in a smile.

“Hey, wait,” Korra said, pointing back at the man. “What about him? He’s not a human.”

Both men froze. “The hell are you talking about,” the passenger said. “Of course I’m human.”

Korra pointed to the Humvee in front of them. “What about Tracer and the other team?”

The driver stared at Korra out of the corner of his eye. “Yeah, they’re human too. What the heck is wrong with you, someone Dip your brain or something?”

Both women paused at the comment. The idea hadn’t occurred to them, the idea that the Dip from Roger Rabbit could hurt themselves or their friends. Seeing what had happened to the Toon shoe had been unnerving, but the idea that it could happen to her?  That  effectively  took away every team that Campbell could say would the Dip could harm from ever coming back until it  was neutralized .

In the lead Humvee, Pharah was busy mapping out the trip. The role of the leader wasn’t  just  to ensure the mission  was accomplished  , it was to take care of and know her people.  There were several small towns along the way to stop at, nevermind the dozen or so rest stops they could make along the way  . If she could stop getting distracted by the different types of cars driving by she’d be better off. Some  were animated  cars  being driven by  live-action characters. Some were cartoons driving live-action cars. The meshing of realities was such a clash that it was hard to even see before Pharah turned back to the map. “Tell me, what do you know about Chicago?”

“ Just  that it’s gone quiet recently,” the merc said. “If Mr. Xanatos says we’re going, we’re going. We’re getting paid right?”

“Right,” Pharah said, feeling terrible inside. She had been like this before the recall, a mercenary focused on doing her work and getting paid. She’d been lucky in a sense after what had happened with the Anubis AI.  It had told her what she wasn’t supposed to be, how she needed to correct herself to not become as much an unfeeling machine as the God AIs . She’d made a promise to herself, to become the leader her mother had been in Overwatch. To watch out for everyone, even if they weren’t part of her own team. The mercs were part of that extended team now, and she had to look after them as well. Even if they were still focused on the money rather than the mission.

She grabbed the radio and pressed the  transmit  button. “All vehicles, we’ll drive for roughly four more hours before we pull off for rest and food. Any questions?” None. “Very well. Maintain speed and distance, we’ll be in…” She double-checked the town. “Clearfield, PA by then.”

“Great, middle of nowhere.” The disdain was obvious in the voice of the merc on the other end. “We should push straight on through to Detroit, we won’t be there until sunset anyway.”

Pharah could have said that it was because she was in charge, but that would’ve been poor form. “I want everyone to keep their senses sharp, we won’t have that if we don’t take breaks and recharge every few hours.  We have no idea what we’ll see once we reach Ohio at any rate, if we need to react I don’t want anyone distracted because they’re hungry or holding it in .” The drive after was silent.

* * *

Bolin groaned as he stretched out in the parking lot of the “Arby’s”. “Man, those things are not comfortable.”

“Don’t think they're built for comfort bro,” Mako said, taking in the small stretch of shops. They were  mostly  food, some “motels” nearby as well.  About this time they were getting full, mobiles and cargo mobiles pulling in for a quick bite before getting back on the road like they were doing  . The mercs were staying to themselves, and that was fine with Mako.  Even if he’d gotten a rocky start, he was a professional officer, these were only hired thugs working for some quick yuan . The fact they were willing to work for a man that was worse than Varrick made them all the more troubling.

As Bolin started walking, he turned and stopped. “Hey, Mako, you see that restaurant there?”

Mako followed Bolin’s eyes and saw it. A small place, checkered in green and white. Two frog-salmon legs stood upside down behind the smiling fat face of an old man. The words underneath, “Doc Hopper’s Frog Legs”. “Yeah bro, I see it.” Worse, he saw the mercs all going into it. “C’mon, let’s see what happened to Kermit.”

Stepping inside Doc Hopper’s, the pair saw that it was  relatively  clean.  There were small tables and booths, a counter to order from, and small ads encouraging the customer to try new additions to the menu  . Right now, they were offering the new “boneless” frog legs, a dozen for eight dollars. They were also having a special on Tadpole Treats, order two and get a free extra toy.  On every poster, the smiling felt face of Kermit the Frog trying to actually look happy about selling his fellow frogs as food .

Bolin cringed as he took in the sight. “Bro, why are we in here?”

“We need to keep learning about this place,” Mako said, watching as the screens above the counter flashed different meal deals for legs  . “Kermit’s the core of the Muppets, if we can find a way to get him away from this the Muppets will be able to give us more help.” Watching, he saw the mercs make their orders and grab some space.  They chatted as they dug into the frog legs, Mako noticing their mannerisms as he and Bolin walked up to the counter  .  They acted like the officers and detectives in Republic City when off-duty, joking and chatting about life without a care  .  The teens and random Muppets behind the counter served the food and worked the kitchen, taking drive-thru orders and looking bored with life .

The person behind the register was a bored looking Muppet, bumps scattered across his face as he looked out from under his green visor . “Welcome to Doc Hopper’s, would you like to try our new Boneless Legs?”

“No thanks,” Mako said. “We’ll take two drinks?” The Muppet nodded and pulled two paper cups off a stack behind the counter. “Oh, does the water here have any sugar or salt in it?” The Muppet paused and stared at Mako for a second before he gave a sheepish grin and threw some bills at the counter.

Inside Arby’s, Korra was staring at “smokehouse brisket” sandwich trying to figure out what it was. Touching it made her skin crawl, the sensation like fresh blubber before it could  be treated  . The warmth didn’t help make it any more palatable.  Asami was giving the same expression to her “Beef ‘N Cheddar”, trying to decide  whether or not  this was some kind of sick joke on the part of the workers behind the counter .

Mercy shook her head as she took a forkful of salad. “You might as well eat it, we won’t be stopping for some time.”

Korra poked at the sandwich, worried it was gonna leap up and attack her. “Why is all the food in these dimensions so…”

“It’s the future you have to be aware of,” Mercy said, sounding disappointed.  “As populations grow and demands  easily  made food, people will realize that the fastest and cheapest meals to make are the most unhealthy . As long as they dress up the taste enough, people will buy it and eat it.”

“This?” Asami held up her sandwich and pointed at it in disbelief. “People will eat this because it’s easy to get?”

Mercy nodded. “Some have food like this three meals a day.”

Korra gagged. “Why? Do they not know how bad it is?”

“In my time, they do.” Mercy held up a forkful of salad. “Even their healthiest options are only good to eat once or twice a week.”

Asami blinked, then turned around at the fact that there were already a dozen people inside eating or ordering . “What is wrong with this world?”

“Nothing,” Mercy said. “The fact is, the food is cheap enough that anyone can buy it.  If you’re homeless or struggle to maintain economic security, a place like Arby’s can offer you a consistent source of nutrition . No matter how poor.”

Korra grimaced as she turned toward the sandwich sitting in front of her. “So why are you eating it?”

“Well it isn’t going to kill you, having it once or even twice a week so long as you remain active.” Mercy had another bite. “That’s the problem. It’s cheap, it’s available. How many people home after a long day at work want to spend time cooking?”

Asami was staring  anxiously  at the sandwich in hand. It wasn’t a  badly  cooked quick meal now, it was a symbol of things to come. As the Republic grew, so would needs. As technology advanced, so would demands for convenience. The poor would need food, and if they had a choice between going to the market or getting a ready-made meal?

Pharah sat at the table, smiling as she got set to dig into her own meal when she saw Asami’s face. “What’s wrong?”

Korra answered, face going green. “ Apparently  the future isn’t what it was.”

Pharah turned to Mercy. “Did you explain fast food to them?”  Even as she was trying to rationalize what she learned, Asami noticed Mercy’s face redden as she turned away from Pharah  . The team leader sighed and turned to the pair. “She’s right, fast food isn’t exactly good. The thing is that it’s what the future is.” Smiling, Pharah held up her own sandwich. “Think about it. The bread, meat, cheese,  all of  this for only a few dollars? Then think about all the work that needs to go into making a soda. Fast food isn’t a substitute for real food, but think about what it means.” Asami and Korra stayed silent. Pharah laughed and took a bite.  “The meat  was raised  in Texas, taken to Kansas to  be slaughtered  , then frozen and shipped to Illinois to  be packaged  before it got this specific Arby’s in a refrigerated vehicle to  be put  in my sandwich  .  The bread for the wheat came from Kansas and  was baked  in Illinois before reaching this restaurant . Yes, the future has problems, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be amazing as well.”

Asami glanced back at her sandwich and nodded. “Meaning that there’s more than cheap food you can move the same way.” Pharah nodded, sipping at her drink. Smiling a little, Asami glanced to Korra. “Let’s hope Varrick isn’t the first one to realize this idea.” Sighing, Asami held up her sandwich and took a bite the same time Korra did.  Then the two spat the sandwiches back out, Asami chugging her water as Korra tried to scrape the taste off her tongue .

Pharah groaned. “We’ll find you something before we get back on the road.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

* * *

The sun was low on the horizon as the team rolled into the outskirts of Toledo, Ohio. It reminded Korra of the smaller cities in the Earth Confederation, small houses and shops and small lives doing what they needed to survive. It wasn’t that it was a bad place to live in Korra’s eyes, it was what it was, and that was fine. Places like this more often than not had the nicer people, at least during the day. At night, Korra knew that somewhere someone was brawling for money. Someone was out there doing what they had to do so they could eat another night.

Reinhardt didn’t see that. As the team rode through he saw a city in decline. Industry in Toledo had fled long ago, and now the city sat like a decaying carcass. The problem was that there was no way for some of the city to leave. The rich could easily move, find greener pastures and start anew. The poor, the needy, they were trapped. Politicians would of course claim that the city could return, that there were new industries to bring hope to the hopeless, but Reinhardt knew better. Even here America had to learn harsh lessons, had to realize that what was gone was not coming back. Charities would only prolong the inevitable, it was the tragedy of it all. The human need to help people could only do so much good before it was turned into farce.

Pharah broke over the radio. “_We’ll find a motel here and move in tomorrow. I don’t want to be in Detroit overnight if we can help it._”

“_Are you kidding me?_” It was the snide mercenary from earlier, the one who thought that just barreling down I-80 was the right decision. “_We’re this close to part of our payday and you want to put us to sleep?_”

“_I want to make sure we’re rested and fresh for whatever we find tomorrow,_” Pharah said, not even bothering to try to hide her annoyance. “_Unless you want to be surprised tomorrow by something none of us could even predict that wipes us out._” Silence. “_I thought so._”

Finding a motel off the interstate, the Humvees made a sight pulling in before the small Motel 6. A confused looking middle-aged woman gave them their keys and stared at them as they walked off, Reinhardt putting his bags down on the floor in a small heap by the door. Brigitte collapsed onto her bed, dropping her green jacket as she went down face-first into the pillow. Chuckling as his squire took a moment to recover from the drive, he reached into his pockets and pulled out his things. A multitool, in case Brigitte was unable to maintain his armor. Also handy to have around in case of any situation, he’d found uses for one many times in the Heer.

Pulling out his wallet, he shook his head at the sight of an American one dollar bill. It was so plain, just green with intricate designs. Still, the Americans knew what they looked like well enough to prevent too much counterfeiting. He chuckled at the stern face of Washington on the front, before turning it over to look at the back. The great seal, Eagle proudly bearing the arrows and olive branch, and the Eye of Providence on the left. Unfinished, becoming more perfect, with a massive all-seeing eye…

“_All-seeing eye?_” Reinhardt froze. The pyramid, he’d seen it before in one of the shows. A cartoon, one that had the twins and the Mystery Shack…

Reinhardt crumpled up the bill and threw it in the trash. “Brigitte, get your money out now!”

Brigitte shot up, trying to figure out why Reinhardt was shouting and ripping money out of his wallet. “Reinhardt? What are you doing?”

“The dollar bills, the pyramid,” Reinhardt shouted. “Leave your wallet here, go get the others and bring them here at once! Go!” Brigitte’s eyes widened as she jumped up and started running. Tossing her wallet to Reinhardt, he ripped it open and started pulling out the dollar bills as the team started to gather in his room. They all were putting their wallets back in as they came, Brigitte must have explained part of what was happening.

Pharah and Brigitte came in last, the room was starting to feel crowded with ten people inside but that was secondary. “What have you got old man?”

Reinhardt started to speak when they all noticed it, the world around them was going gray. The sounds of traffic outside started to fade as the clock on the wall froze before the second hand could make the next minute. As the world seemed to freeze and drain of life, a cackling laugh echoed around them all. The TV came to life, spewing static until a single eye opened on it. As everyone watched, the flat yellow pyramid himself started circling slowly around the room.

“Well, well, well. At long last, we finally meet! The MVTF, the new talk of the interdimensional water cooler!” Bill held out his hand at Reinhardt. “Nice to meetcha, name’s Bill!” Reinhardt stepped back, glaring at the demon. “Oh, that’s right, that jerk Soupy ruined this for me.”

“What’re you doing here,” Mako barked. “None of us summoned you or made a deal, how’d you get here?”

“Oh, that’s cute Fireball, you think I play by the old rules at this point!” Bill flew over and ruffled Mako’s head. “You’re right, I can’t go inside your minds. Lucky me, I’ve got a few my toys to play with.”

“Wait,” Genji said. “Your body, it’s not three-dimensional. You haven’t left Gravity Falls.”

“Yeah, yeah you’re right.” Bill rolled his eye as he floated down to sit atop the TV. “Still, I will eventually. Which is why you all being here is a problem.”

“You haven’t escaped,” Mako said. “Good, it means the Pines family hasn’t given up.”

Bill laughed again. “You’re pretty quick kid. Here, I’ll bring your parents back.” With a snap of his fingers, Bill brought Mako and Bolin’s parents into being. San looked around in confusion, before stopping at the sight of Mako and Bolin. Naoki clung close to her husband, staring at everyone in terrified confusion.

Asami turned toward Bill. “What are you doing, you think-”

Bill laughed again. “Oh don’t worry Rich Girl, I won’t forget you.” With another snap of the fingers, Asami was suddenly staring at a woman with done-up raven hair looking just as confused around the room as everyone else was at her.

“What’s happening,” San whispered. “Who…Who are you two?”

“Asami,” Yasuko whispered, hands flying to cover her mouth. “Asami…Is that you?” Like she was reaching out for something that might hurt her, she slowly tried to touch what she was starting to realize was her daughter.

“Oh, wait a second!” Bill shook his…body? “I forgot, this isn’t what they looked like the very last time they were around.”

Korra’s eyes went wide as she tried to stop Bill from snapping. “No, don’t-”

_SNAP_

The three parents screamed, collapsing to the floor as the room suddenly filled with the smell of burning flesh. Reinhardt watched in horror as San’s face started to sear, his face turning into a terrible burnt form that even has bone sticking out from the right cheek as his eye turned into a milky melted form. Naoki clutched at her stomach, unable to hold on to her beloved as her dress burned away revealing a red mess of burned and blackened skin on her stomach that opened up and threatened to spill her guts everywhere over the floor. Yasuko cried out, clutching as the left side of her chest as muscle and tendon appeared in the wipe-open shoulder. Reinhardt had seen such wounds before, blasts that turned men into cinders. That was the worst part. All three of them should be dead. They weren’t.

“There, that’s better.” Bill opened his arms out to the room. “C’mon, say hi to your kids!”

Mercy was already in trauma mode, trying to work on Yasuko. It wasn’t personal, and it wasn’t that her triage training told her she was the most likely to live. All three of them were supposed to be dead with such wounds, Yasuko was just the closest. Mako was frozen, it was one thing when you had to be the one to take care of a victim, but another when the victim was family. Bolin was making some kind of noises, a mix between a strangled cry and a terrified sob. Asami was screaming, but the words all blended together so fast and so garbled by her tears that they couldn’t be made out.

Reinhardt turned and glared at pyramid. “Enough beast! You wish to talk to us, then talk!”

“Ugh, you knight-types are so boring.” Rolling his eye again, Bill snapped and sent the three parents away in a flash of bright orange flames with a final cry of pain and terror. Mako tried to reach out for his father as Bolin stared where his mother had been. Asami pulled his fists in to her chest, the pain and desperation clear as she stared at the empty space next to Mercy. “Fine, they’re gone.”

Reinhardt glared into Bill, stepping in front of the demon, good eye to evil eye. “Now talk to us demon, why are you here?”

“Why wouldn’t I be,” Bill said, crossing his legs. “You guys are making major waves. You’re the talk of the multiverse water cooler in fact. That’s why I’m talking to you now. Look, you all know what the story is. Thing is, I know lots of things. **_LOTS OF THINGS._**” Bill’s being went from yellow to a rapid flash of images, but they weren’t like in the show. A cross he had never seen before; a young girl in a white blouse and blue skirt with brown hair; a geometric shape he’d never seen before; a column of red cracked rock; a purple symbol that looked like a stylized insect of three half-circles that ended in two pincers; a great golden pyramid; finally, a picture of what looked like the entire MVTF.

Reinhardt didn’t falter. “Then what do you want? We know what you are, what you plan on doing to this universe.”

“That’s it, this universe.” Leaning back, Bill made a cup of coffee appear. “Look, I’m a reasonable multi-dimensional being, I just wanted a little more freedom for myself and my buddies. We’ve got that here, an entire universe to make our own personal playground.” Sipping the coffee…somehow, Bill gestured to Korra. “Oh, by the way, Raava’s got a few things to answer for. Better you know that now than later.”

Before Korra could ask, Reinhardt kept negotiating. “You wish us to remove ourselves from this dimension forever.”

“There’s nothing for any of you here Galahad,” Bill said. “It’s simple. You leave this dimension alone and I’ll leave the MVTF alone. You can worry about all the other stuff out there, and I’ll even throw in some information for you.”

“Compromised information,” Reinhardt said. “We could trust nothing you say, nothing you do. Further more, you’re still trapped physically within Gravity Falls. You’re no threat to us.”

“Oh, am I?” Vanishing, the TV switched on to show Bill in front of a map of the US. “Think again Galahad, I basically own all of Oregon now!” The scene cut to a shot of Oregon, with a triangle formed in the center that bore a massive eye. “Don’t make a mistake on this one, you guys are getting a great deal for a great price!”

“We will not abandon these innocents,” Reinhardt said, standing firm in the eye of Bill. “You’re frightened of us, Bill Cipher. We’ve faced threats like you before.”

Bill started to laugh, leaving the TV and floating back up above the TV. “Oh, that’s hilarious! You’re nothing compared to what’s out there buddy, not even Kane is as bad as what else is around.”

“You forget we have allies as well,” Reinhardt said, grinning up at the demon. “We’ve already aligned with the OWCA, the Muppets, and Heckapoo.”

Bill laughed. “Oh, Heckapoo’s got bigger problems than me to worry about. Look, I’ll give you guys this freebie. You can clean up Chicago and Detroit, but that’s it. After that, you have to stay out.”

“I answer for all the MVTF then,” Reinhardt said, his voice firm and his posture proud. “We will return, Bill Cipher. You will not keep us from completing our mission to discover what happened here.”

Bill cackled again. “Oh, you say that now Galahad. Don’t worry, by the time Bacon Head realizes what’s happening, you’ll all wish you’d never come here! Well, I’m about done being vague and cryptic enough, I’ll be outta here. Remember, your lives are short and have no meaning outside what they’re given by others!”

Bill vanished, the flash of light returning the room to color and returning the sound of the highway outside. Mako was still breathing heavily. Bolin was still shaking on the floor. Asami was barely biting back sobs. Sighing, Reinhardt went to the three and swept them up in his arms. “It’s alright. He’s gone now.”

Pharah sighed. “Let’s…Let’s try and get some sleep.”

* * *

The team was silent as everyone got up and loaded into the Humvees for the rest of the drive. The mercs all tried looking at each other for an answer, but a pained look from Pharah ended the thought and they were off. It was another long silent drive, but this time there was no boredom. Overwatch sat in silence, but Korra watched Asami anxious from the corner of her eye. Asami didn’t let on, but the lifeless look in her eyes was proof that last night had hit hard. Bolin looked like he’d barely had any sleep last night, and Mako went to his Humvee with an expression like he’d spent his dreams fighting to figure out what was real.

“_We’re approaching Detroit now,_” Pharah radioed. “_We should begin to see the first signs of Detroit Deluxe in minutes._”

The driver of Korra’s Humvee looked at the radio. “Detroit Deluxe? That’s not even demolishing the old buildings yet.”

Korra looked over. “What? What do you mean they aren’t even demolishing?”

“Yeah, Detroit Deluxe only got announced three months ago.” The driver looked at Korra like she was a child he had to explain something to. “They’ve got a lot of work ahead of them though.” Korra tried to imagine what he was talking about, for about ten minutes.

They came into a neighborhood that looked like where O’Neill lived, except it was dead. That was the first thought in her mind as the Humvees rolled through the rows of decaying houses. Front porches falling to pieces as they passed, and vacant lots looking like new grasslands where the neighborhoods once ruled. She thought she even saw some wild animals skirting about, small herds of them in this urban wasteland. Part of Korra wondered if this was the future for the parts of Republic City that couldn’t be rebuilt, that could only be left to the spirits and vines. Cars sitting outside the few occupied houses looked like they were ready to fall apart from rust, or were decades out of synch with what she’d seen in the drive to the city.

“This isn’t right,” Asami whispered. “This can’t be Detroit, this doesn’t look right at all.”

“Oh this is nothing,” the driver said. “Wait until we get into the city proper.”

Korra and Asami stared at each other trying to puzzle out what they were hearing as they passed a sign.

_Welcome to Detroit: The Motor City!_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

* * *

If the outskirts of the city had been Republic City now, Detroit proper was Republic City after being abandoned. Some blocks were still filled with houses that looked like the people in them were fighting to keep their homes alive. Others were so decrepit that Korra couldn’t believe that there had been people living there at all. Several times she passed by streets that looked like they were blocked off by metal rails or stone barriers, but that didn’t make sense since there were still cars and people behind them. The city wouldn’t just block off streets people were living on, that were still alive. It must have been Kane Co.

Several times there were massive warehouses and factories they passed that were abandoned as well. Korra noticed Asami staring at them in confusion, trying to figure out why they were being left to rot. Korra didn’t have to think hard to figure out what the problem was. To Asami, factories didn’t shut down. Factories kept pumping out goods and making machines. They were filled with people working and bosses making sure things ran smoothly. Instead, the rusting machines inside and the fading paint on the signs marking the plants were like a warning of what could be. Korra saw several signs with the same several symbols: A blue oval with stylized script. A blue square with two block letters. A five-point star. Korra realized that at one time, those three were dominant. Now, they were memories.

A Humvee behind, Mako saw another picture. At each block he saw graffiti, markers like they’d see in Republic City marking the different triad turfs. He couldn’t deny that some of it actually looked impressive, big and bold in vibrant colors. He wondered if maybe some of it wasn’t criminal related, but to his mind most of it was. If he could, he’d ask the cops they were passing about which might be which if it weren’t for the looks they had. Instead of just looking out for possible crimes in progress, they scanned like they were about to be ambushed. They didn’t dress like the police he’d seen outside of the SGC, they wore heavy vests and carried weapons he thought only soldiers carried.

The most troubling part to him was the numbers of angry men sitting outside houses when it was clearly the time of day for most people to be at work. Mako knew what the story was, that these people were desperate for work and had joined the only group that could give them any chance at getting the money they needed to live. Mako couldn’t judge them, he and Bolin had done the same thing at a far younger age. These men had the same looks as Shady Shin and Two-Toed Ping, hungry eyes looking for a new bite to take for themselves. Part of Mako desperately hoped that these men were not the same kind of criminals he’d grown up with, or else the mission would be that much worse.

The convoy rolled into the lot of a small Xanatos warehouse, set in the middle of a decaying industrial block. As they left the Humvees, Korra noticed Asami’s haunted look deepening. Korra didn’t quite feel comfortable either, watching as one of the warehouses lost the sign hanging in front of it. A group of Xanatos employees were waiting inside the warehouse, a small cluster of desks and computers set up as employees in gray jumpsuits organizing information on several screens. Maps of the county, the city, the two small cities _inside_ the city, the lake, the city center, and it was starting to overload Korra just a bit.

To Pharah and Reinhardt, it was a forward command center in the field. It was the flow of information from observation posts and electronic intelligence, combined into recognizable forms. It was the facilitation of the mission, allowing them to do what the US Marines called “BAMCIS”.

B – Begin the planning

A – Arrange reconnaissance

M – Make reconnaissance

C – Complete the planning

I – Issue orders

S – Supervise

The key elements of a plan, all necessary to take down Abraham Kane.

“Capt. Amari?” One of the employees walked over with a sheaf of papers. “These are the intelligence points Mr. Xanatos ordered us to compile on Kane Co’s operations. He also included a short outline of what he believes would be the most intelligent course of action against-”

“Thank you,” Pharah said patiently, taking the papers with a nod. “We’ll compare this with our own intelligence gathered on the city and compare it to what Mr. Xanatos has provided. Once we’re finished, do you have a plan for the aftermath?”

The man nodded. “Mr. Xanatos said that he’s coordinating with Pres. Martinez to oversee a large-scale infrastructure program, one that should put Detroit on a stable footing and put Abraham Kane under secure observation.”

“Secure observation.” Pharah could tell what that meant, it was a favorite of intelligence agencies like the CIA and MIG-6. Pharah knew it meant that Kane would probably be more than welcome to be out and about in the public eye. The only thing was, the Sword of Damocles would hang over him for life. Any toe out of line, any movement to build his company back up, and he would be turned into a missing person. If he was lucky, it would be a long stay in a small cell in a prison that didn’t exist. If he really screwed up, there wouldn’t be anything to bury and no place to mourn for his daughter.

Reinhardt looked over the papers as Pharah leafed through them. This wasn’t the Detroit of Motor City, either Detroit Deluxe or the ruins of Old Detroit. This was the Detroit that had been just before the Omnic Crisis. Pictures of decaying blocks and rotting cars. Of protests for recognition, for education, for a chance at life. Of police brutality and being hemmed in because of where they live, for who they are.

The kind of place a knight is meant to be.

Pharah finished reading the information and looked back over her shoulder at Reinhardt. She had a grin, the same grin he remembered flashing to her back when she first toured the Overwatch HQ as a young girl. She’d argued with her mother about wearing the white dress that was now forever immortalized in the first group picture of Overwatch, but Reinhardt had made sure to have an “accident” with a pan of oil soon after. The picture had been for Ana. The stained dress that had to be covered up with an Overwatch jacket? That was for Pharah.

“We can handle actions on our own,” Pharah said, turning back to the employee. “If you can continue to provide us with actionable intelligence to act on we’ll be able to stop Kane Co from growing.” The employee nodded, turning back to the screens as Pharah and Reinhardt walked back to the teams. “He didn’t mention the fact that Detroit is still Detroit.”

“I noticed,” Reinhardt said. “This is your mission Fareeha. What are you orders?”

“Like I said old man,” she said, flashing a predatory grin. “We’ll take this intelligence and see what Xanatos really wants from this city.”

Reinhardt nodded, flashing the same grin. “Time to start the hunt.”

Stepping away from the screens, Owen stepped into a back room and took off his ballcap and threw on his glasses. Pulling out a small cell, he dialed his boss. “They are certainly trying something sir, but they’re purposefully keeping out people out of the loop.”

“_I’m not surprised. We did expect something like this would happen after all. Don’t worry, Fox is already on her part of the operation. We’ll be securing the new asset shortly._”

“Understood sir,” Owen said. “Will continue to monitor the situation here.”

* * *

As the teams spent the next day scouting the city, Asami looked progressively worse with each day. Pharah could clearly see it, but she knew what it was. Bill’s little introduction had done a number on all of them, she was still trying to let the image of the three parents go away after what he’d done. Which was why she was so focused on the city proper.

The roads were messes of potholes and neglect. If the outlying neighborhoods had been bad, the ones ringing the downtown were akin to a fresh warzone. The houses were still there, or at least the gutted skeletons that were left. The groups of men on the front stoops were larger, angrier looking. The police cars didn’t even stop in these neighborhoods, Pharah watched as they drove right by without even taking a quick look at anything. Even the police cars looked terrible, paint flaking away with faded city logos on the doors.

“This whole city’s falling apart,” Korra whispered as they drove by. “What happened?”

“The future,” Pharah said. “The factories automated and the companies prioritized profits and stocks. The auto companies had no reason to keep their as many employees as before so they fired them.”

Reinhardt nodded. “When people were told that the Omniums would be entirely automated, no city wanted them anywhere near. Automation meant no one living near them could actually earn a living from them.” Reinhardt shook his head. “Many believe that’s the only reason mankind was not overrun during the Omnic Crisis.”

Korra shrugged. “Well, I guess that’s lucky?” Turning back to stare out the window a while, Korra watched as a trio of kids shuffled by on the sidewalk. One of them looked up at the Humvee, but Korra shuddered. She’d seen those eyes before, back when she looked in the mirror after the Red Lotus nearly killed her. She’d never seen such eyes on a child’s face. She never wanted to again either.

“I still don’t see any sign of what Detroit Deluxe would become,” Pharah said. “Maybe we’re looking for something that isn’t there?”

“Then Xanatos wouldn’t have supplied us for this expedition,” Reinhardt said. “He would have had us go straight to Chicago. There must be something here, something he considers a threat.”

“To the nation or to him?” Pharah stopped at a rusting light hanging by wires in the middle of the street. “Motorcity only lasted a single season, we finished the entire thing in a single day. Maybe Campbell overestimated the size of Detroit Deluxe?”

“It might be underground,” Reinhardt said. “Motorcity was buried underneath Kane’s city, perhaps there are parts of Detroit under construction that we can begin investigating.”

As the two went on, Korra scanned the streets some more, until a bench caught her eye. The ad on it was faded, but the image of a proud looking man with a red mustache and full head of hair caught her attention. “Uh, guys? I think I have a place we can start.”

Reinhardt turned as saw it. “_Kane Security Company: Building Your Peace of Mind_”.

Pharah nodded. Time to BAMCIS. The second the light went green, she peeled into a u-turn and roared back to the warehouse. “Radio back, tell them we have a starting point. Tell Xanatos’ people to start dragging up everything they can about Kane’s company and what kind of threat we should expect to see.”

“He looked younger, more fit,” Reinhardt said as he picked up the radio. “He may be more willing to face us in person, that could be a greater threat depending on his technology.”

“We also don’t know the state of his daughter,” Pharah said, suddenly looking more serious. “If she’s still a child we have to take her into consideration.” Reinhardt said nothing, he’d speak to Pharah later about what she was really thinking.

Glancing back, Reinhardt saw that Pharah’s eyes were still locked on the neighborhood. They were looking for threats, important points, but then he turned to Asami and saw that it wasn’t Bill’s little stunt bothering her anymore.

Another hour of driving, and Pharah bolted for the maps with Korra once they returned to the warehouse. Reinhardt wasn’t as swift, waiting for Asami to try and spend the rest of the day leaning against the nearest wall away from everyone. Nodding, he walked over. “There’s much to take in here, isn’t there.”

“I guess,” Asami whispered. “Last night was just rough on all of us.”

“Yes, but last night didn’t haunt you earlier,” Reinhardt said. He motioned to a pair folding chairs, Asami meekly sitting down with him. “I am sorry for what happened last night. You didn’t deserve to see that. The demon merely wants to torment us because he knows we have the means to stop him.”

Asami nodded. “I know, I know we can stop him. I wasn’t there when my mother died, I guess I should be thankful. The person that killed her broke into our house, while I was at school and my father was at his office. I only found out after my dad came to pick me up. I knew it was bad from how he was still crying.” Asami sighed and walked to a window. “All I knew was that it was a firebender that did it. If that was how she died…”

“It’s never easy,” Reinhardt said. “During the war, many children were forced to see their parents perish, and even more never found out what happened to them. Europe remains a land of orphans to this day.” Reinhardt’s eyebrow rose as he turned to look at Asami, his blind eye staring down at her. “That’s not the problem now though, is it?”

Asami blinked, and hung her head. “I guess you’re used to seeing things like this.”

“What you saw last night shook you, but I like to think that you’re strong enough to understand threats from a being like him. You know that what you saw last night wasn’t your real mother, Bolin and Mako understand that too. The fact that the look on your face still remained as we drove through the city tells me something else troubles you.”

Asami nodded, looking back on the decaying street outside. “This city, I don’t understand. All these warehouses, and the factories and neighborhoods just outside. I mean we passed a sign that said this is the Motor City, that means there’s mobiles here right? This is where they manufacture them? What happened?”

“Does your world have archaeology?” Asami shook her head. “Here, we once had great beasts, the dinosaurs. Massive lizards that ruled the world, some as tall as this building with great necks that reached up five stories. Terrible and awesome killers with teeth the size of my hand.” He held out his right for good measure. “Then, in one terrible epoch, they were wiped from the planet to live on as the stories of dragons and monsters. It was only when we found their bones that we realized they were real.”

“But you said they ruled the world,” Asami said. “What could be powerful enough to kill them all?”

“A meteor,” Reinhardt said, clenching his fist. “A massive rock from the farthest reaches in space crashed into Earth, and created a chain of events that the dinosaurs could not adapt to.” He turned and waved to the city. “The same reason Detroit is dying. Automation and competition have turned what was once the greatest manufacturing city in the United States into a fast-decaying relic of a previous age.” He waited as Asami took in what he was saying. “An age you fear the United Republic is now in.”

Asami nodded. “Republic City has had some rough times, but we’re finally moving forward again. Seeing all this, I mean I always thought we would only lose some of the market share. Now I’m worried we could lose everything. All our workers would be left without a single yuan for food.”

“And that is why you are not the men who did this to Detroit,” Reinhardt said. “When it came time to decide between a new course for their companies, or clinging to the past as it had been, the men in charge decided that instead of evolving that they would preserve what they had always made money on. They automated their factories, and cast out their workers.”

“Cast them out?” Asami shook her head, her face locked in disbelief. “They didn’t do anything for them? This is what happened?”

“Those that could left for the suburbs,” Reinhardt said. “They took their tax money and fled, leaving the ones who couldn’t to stay in the ashes of a dying city.”

Asami looked like she was being told that it wasn’t the sun shining down, but a massive alien spaceship that was about to destroy the world. “Why? Didn’t the government do anything to try and help?”

“Of course,” Reinhardt said. “There isn’t any way to help if they’re overwhelmed though. The same technology that put these men out of business took away the taxes that would have helped them survive.”

Asami slid against the wall and shuddered. “This is the future?”

“Only if you let it become the future,” Reinhardt said. “You are not like the men that did this to Detroit. You understand that wealth does not set you apart from the rest of the world.” Smiling, Reinhardt put his hand on Asami’s shoulder and turned to show his good eye. “I know you would not so readily cast those who work under you to the winds were it a question between profit and the future.”

Asami smiled, remembering that yes, she was choosing people over profit. “Thanks Reinhardt.”

The massive man chuckled softly. “Come. We would do well to see what Pharah is planning next. I feel this fight will be amazing!”


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

* * *

“We’ve managed to pinpoint Kane’s primary office,” Pharah said, three days into the search. She stood in front of a map of Detroit, with two arrows on it. One, dead center inside the city. The other, several miles outside the city. “Campus Martius Park, several floors in 1001 Woodward. Thanks to Mr. Xanatos’ intelligence, we’ve determined that their only security inside the building consists of a pair of guards at the front desk, two roving security guards in a room on the seventh floor, and several electronic systems.”

“The real  objective is here.” Pharah tapped on the arrow outside the city. “They have a ‘development facility’ in Fenton.  Our intelligence points to this as the location Kane is creating the technologies he would use to create Detroit Deluxe .”

“What about Kane himself,” Genji said. “Where does he live?”

“Here,” Pharah said. Tapping on a picture of Kane. “Palmer Woods.  It seems Kane made his money providing private police services to the wealthier neighborhoods in Detroit .  The city didn’t argue because it allowed them to send  additional officers to the neighborhoods of the city that they’d lost control over, that they’d had to block off .”

Korra froze. “They…They blocked those neighborhoods off themselves? That wasn’t Kane?”

“No, that was the city proper.” Pharah tried to ignore Korra’s anger starting to grow.  “With these contracts Kane has gained access to the city’s CCTV feeds and police bands, allowing him to gain a massive surveillance network for his plans . Now that we’re here, we can prevent Detroit Deluxe from ever becoming a reality.”

One of the mercenaries scoffed. “So what’s the plan, blow up the three buildings?”

“Not if we want to keep this clean and quiet,” Pharah said. “We’ll split into three teams.  The first will move on his offices, acquiring and destroying any data available before withdrawing .  The second will move in on the research facility and destroy all active projects and data in the building .” Pharah took a breath and tapped on Kane’s picture. “The third will go after Kane. Emphasis is on him. Not his wife or daughter, but only him. Once we have him, we’ll turn him over to the government and have them make it clear what will happen next.” Pharah noticed the mercenaries look at each other. “Remember that our involvement here is covert. We must not give the government or Xanatos any reason to doubt our ability to do a job quiet and clean. I’ll hand out assignments in two hours, until then get ready. We’ll make out move tomorrow night.”

As the teams scattered, Reinhardt came up to Pharah. “One day is a rush Fareeha, we need at least three more days. The layouts of the buildings and offices, the number of guards, we’re not going in blind, we’re sprinting at a cliff.”

“We would be,” Pharah said, holding up a folder. “Schematics of each building.  Xanatos' people found these on the public record .”

Reinhardt nodded as he leafed through the folder. “The offices, the research facility, and the house.” Reinhardt glanced over at Pharah. “Nothing is out of his reach.”

“We know that we’re dealing with a snake,” Pharah said. “Our plan has relied on our trying to circumvent him when we know he’s trying to make his play.”

“That’s the problem,” Reinhardt said. “Xanatos isn’t going to make it obvious. He has money, power,  possibly immortality. He can afford to play a far longer game than any of us can imagine.”

“Well we can’t stop him now,” Pharah said. “Those mercenaries are under orders to only work with us as long as it suits his needs.  He has the ear of the president and has turned the black operations trying to prop up the country into shadows of what they should be .”

“It’s clear that the OWCA do not approve of him,” Reinhardt said. “ Perhaps once we finish in Chicago, we should speak to the president about this situation?”

“Possible,” Pharah said, turning back to the map.  “I want Korra and Mako at the research facility, if his security drones are being constructed there I don’t want to send anyone else into that lion’s den .  Asami and Bolin will take the office, she should be able to think like the kind of people that would hide something from the authorities .”

“And the home?”

Pharah sighed. “Genji. We’ll wait nearby as backup, but he’s the only one I would trust to extricate Kane without creating a larger problem.”

“The local security will be,” Reinhardt said. “Between the city police and Kane’s own men, never mind the mercenaries. If we’re too effective we don’t know what they will do.”

“So we have to be effective enough,” Pharah grumbled. “Genji knows not to kill the family though, we need to wait for a time when Kane is alone.”

Reinhardt shook his head. “We need to start calling him Abraham. He isn’t Kane, even factoring in A is A.”

“The problem with Disney,” Pharah said. “Make him sound like a villain, he’ll be a villain. Frozen was their first movie to truly go against precedent.”

Reinhardt waved off the idea. “He’s still not the Kane we should be referring to as such. He’s Abraham, not Kane.”

“He’s Abraham Kane,” Pharah said. “We can’t ignore that this is his name. If he is part of the Brotherhood, then we’ll forward the information to Gen. Hammond. If not, that doesn’t change our being here.  We already know there are Kanes that don’t have anything to do with Kane or the Brotherhood, this is another case of the differences in the multiverse .”

Reinhardt shook his head. “Then what’s your contingency? What if Kane resists? Or we  are discovered by the police?” He leaned in close. “If we’re betrayed?”

“I’ll have Brigitte and Mercy remain here,” she said. “You’ll go with Korra and Mako, give them backup in case they run into trouble. I’ll go with Genji to the house, and Tracer will go to the office with Asami and Bolin.”

“We’re going to leave a lot of property damage if Bolin has to fight using the street.”

“Not if he takes these with him,” Pharah said, holding up three chunks of asphalt. “From the pavement outside. If he can lavabend, these should be the perfect solution for any physical threat.”

“Then the only thing left to do is prepare our equipment,” Reinhardt said. “Brigitte and Mercy should suit up while the mission proceeds. You and tracer should go in street clothes. We’ll have Mr. Xanatos pay the price to get me there in an unmarked truck.”

“Then on to Chicago,” Pharah mused. “At least with the city abandoned we won’t have to fear any kind of secrecy.”

“I’m not that sure,” Reinhardt said, glancing back at the mercenaries.

* * *

The next morning Reinhardt rose to see the rest of the platoon still sleeping on their cots under the surplus Army blankets. Smiling at the sight, he rose and walked outside to do his exercises. He took his time stretching out, at his age there was no such thing as over-stretching. Satisfied that he wouldn’t hurt himself, he started his exercises. He’d have to ask about getting a set of weights in a kind of transit lacrima, body weight workouts were fine but if he didn’t maintain his muscle mass he would be ill-suited to still wear the armor of a Crusader.

It was what had gained him access, being a part of the unofficial Heer bodybuilding team before the Omnic Crisis .  He could remember those days of lifting, almost breaking his body to achieve peak physical perfection .  The Crusader armors were only rumors when the Crisis began, and the German government put Porsche on the contract to finish the armor . Even with the best modifications they could make, only the most  physically fit could wield it.  It was a security measure, to make sure that if something went wrong the soldier inside could still make it off the field to safety .  Fortunately , the precision of German engineering had made that an impossibility. Of all the Crusader armors, none  were lost to malfunction or defective manufacture.

The sad part was that the last few armors from the war now sat gathering dust, preserved in museums to honor the fallen .  The very first prototype stood before the road that led to Eichenwalde, memorializing the sacrifices made that day . No one ever entered the city anymore though. No one in Germany spoke of it, but in the national mind it was a cursed place, a haunted city best left to the dead.

As Reinhardt made it halfway through his pushups, he thought about Eichenwalde and how Detroit was well on the way to being like it .  In his own time Detroit was the home for America’s Omnic community, a place where robots and humans could coexist even after the war . This Detroit was what that city had been. Nature had started to reclaim her territory, and man could do nothing. Some of the houses were crumbling back into dust, as trees grew out of the warehouses and factories.

He wondered how Asami was processing things as he widened his arms and worked his triceps. It was one thing for her to hear what he had said, but he also knew that to internalize was a different matter. He had heard what Balderich had told him, but it took his mentor’s death for him to understand what he meant.  If Asami was going to prevent Republic City from becoming like Detroit here, she needed to learn a lot more than how to run a business .

“Surprised you didn’t wake me up old man.” Looking over his shoulder, he saw Brigitte walk over carrying two sticks and two plastic lids. “Found these in the warehouse. Or do you think you’re too tired for a quick sparring session?”

Reinhardt laughed, rising and catching the stick and lid Brigitte tossed his way. “You think you can finally best me?” He started roaring with laughter as Brigitte charged him.

Inside the warehouse, Pharah grumbled as she tried to cover her ears with her pillow. “That’s it, neither one of them can spar until after breakfast.”

After a quick meal from the closest McDonalds (And a lot of disturbed looks when they noticed another Doc Hopper), Pharah stood in front of the map again . “Alright, teams are as follows. Team One is Bolin, Asami, and Tracer. Two, Korra, Mako, Reinhardt. Three, Genji and myself. I want three men each supporting each team.” She got a nod from the leader of the mercs. “Brigitte and Mercy, I want you both to remain here and stand ready. If we need support or something goes wrong I want you both on standby. Any questions?”

“Yeah, what’re we gonna do with Kane once we get him back here?”

“We hand him over to the authorities,” Pharah said. “This is a matter the people can’t know about, not yet. Once we take Kane to the authorities they can decide what to do with him.”

“Sounds like a lot of trouble,” one of the mercs said. “Why not  just take care of him in his house?”

“His daughter,” Pharah said. “Right now she’s young and innocent, but murdering her father could turn her into a threat in a few short years. A living father won’t be as terrible as a dead one.” Pharah ignored seeing Reinhardt’s eyebrow shoot up at that comment. “We’ll take him alive, that’s final. Anyone who doesn’t listen will answer to Mr. Xanatos.” The mercenaries wilted. “Check your gear, we’ll move to our positions at noon.”

* * *

Fox looked out over the blasted coastline. A small fishing town had once stood here, but now there was only a crater and scattered, blackened ruins. At least, what she could see through the suit.

“Less than five Rads a second ma’am,” the mercenary next to her said, his voice distorted by his own containment suit.  “Recommend we only spend daylight hours at work on this project, otherwise we’ll risk the barriers in the suits .”

“Alright,” Fox said. “Get the equipment into position, focus on finding the pieces. If this thing  is built how David said it was they shouldn’t be very hard to find.” Surveying the scene before her, Fox noticed a wooden sign half-buried under the dirt. Reaching down, she pulled up the hunk and brushed it off to see the symbol for Rotary International. Underneath it, the name of the town.

Rockwell, Maine.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

* * *

Even at night, there were still a decent number of people surrounding 1001. Asami tried to play the part of tourist on the town with Bolin and Tracer, playing at taking pictures and exploring the city after dark. Still, she felt her eyes going to the lobby of the building between each snapshot. The two guards looked bored, going through the motions and trying to keep themselves awake for another night shift. In the back of her mind, Asami made sure to make a note. Her own security needed have shorter shifts or make accommodations for sleep rotations.

Tracer walked closer. “C’mon Asami, you need to look a little less uptight. Kane’s got surveillance all over the city, we need to keep looking like we’re having a good time.”

“Sorry,” Asami said. “If he has surveillance all over the city, we’re already seen though.”

“Yeah, but if we take him away he can’t use it.” Wrapping her arm around Bolin’s neck, Tracer brought the earthbender in close and flashed a V with a wink. Asami grinned and snapped another picture, catching the building in the background. “Plus it’ll only be a few security guards, nothing the likes of you two can’t handle.”

“She’s right Asami,” Bolin said, wrapping an arm around Tracer. “You know how corporate types think and they definitely won’t spend money on guards in a place no one would go after.”

Asami groaned. “Bolin, don’t you think you’re pushing it?”

“We’ll we have another fifteen minutes,” Tracer said. “Best get ready. Oh! Take a picture of this!” Before Bolin could ask what, Tracer leapt onto his shoulders and whooped as Bolin tried to not collapse under her. Laughing, Asami trained the camera on them.

* * *

Mako stared at the fenced-in research facility as Korra helped Reinhardt get his armor on. The building wasn’t sprawling, but it had two floors with plenty of space. According to the floor plans the first floor was divided into two primary sections. A small office in the front and a large research facility in the back. A guard post at the entrance to the complex. Two uniformed guards sat inside wearing the blue and white of KaneCo. Both the post and the facility had the logo of the company, three stars above two sabers. The guards looked bored, and the facility itself didn’t look like it had much in the way of security. “Korra, how’s it going?”

Korra grunted as she shifted one of Reinhardt’s armor plates into place. “Almost done-HRK! What’re you thinking?”

“I kill the power by overloading the circuits, that should give us a few minutes to get into the building. Reinhardt, if anything goes wrong break in and get us out.”

“Understood Mako,” Reinhardt said, testing the joints in his left arm. “I have no doubt you can handle this though. This monster will never have the chance to see his dream of Detroit Deluxe come true.”

“I hope you’re right,” Mako thought, checking his watch. A half hour more until it was time. Taking a breath, he went back to watching the building.

* * *

Pharah sat in the car, they’d managed a rental to put her and the mercenaries in while Genji waited to move on the house. She always hated this part of the mission, the wait for the action to begin. It was usually because of the tension, but this time it was because she couldn’t trust the two mercs in the car with her. They weren’t like Helix teams, professionals who understood that they were working for coin. These ones were amateurs, thinking that a wealthy employer and good gear made them elite. It was a key difference, and kept Pharah glancing back in the rearview mirror every few seconds.

Movement. She saw Genji running up to the house, then up the side of the house to position himself next to the chimney. “ I am in position, holding for the target. ”

“Standby.” Checking the clock, Pharah nodded. Five minutes.

* * *

Asami saw the guards look up in surprise at the trio, shuffling in off-balance. Bolin waved at the two with a big smile on his face. Asami playing at being half-conscious while Tracer carried her on her back. “Hey, buddy, can you help us out? We’re kinda turned around and we don’t know where our hotel is.” As one of the guards stood up, Asami buried her head into Tracer’s back and slurred out nonsense.

“It’s okay you, we’ll get you in bed soon enough.” Tracer slurred her words, adding a few giggles in for good measure. Asami groaned, hearing the guard start to move.

“Alright, what hotel are you staying at?”

“The Tipton,” Bolin said.  They’d picked him to be the closest to sober, that way he could at least take care of the guard behind the metal and plastic desk . “How close are we?”

“The Tipton?” The guard came out from behind the desk. “That’s down by 94.” Asami listened as he walked closer. “Look you guys should call a ride and-”

Asami jumped off Tracer’s back and grabbed the man’s shirt as Bolin jumped over the front desk tackling the other guard .  Tracer turned into a blue streak racing toward the stairs as Asami slammed her guard face-first into the top of the front desk . Bolin was busy balling his hands up and knocking out his man with a hard blow to the top of the head. Unfortunately, all he did was cry out. Groaning, Asami jumped next to Bolin and chi blocked the man unconscious. “Anyone?”

Bolin shook his head, looking out the windows as he shifted his guard back into his chair. “No, no one noticed. You see all kind of crazy stuff in the city, they must think we’re still a bunch of tourists that don’t know where they are.”

“Well there’s still the two guards upstairs,” Asami said, helping Bolin move the second guard into the other chair . “C’mon, we need to see if Lena needs help.”

Tracer made it to the door of the guard’s room on the floors rented by KaneCo in time for one of the guards to get out. Slamming the man into the door, Tracer raced inside in time to grab the radio out of the other’s hands. “Uh-uh, that’s not very fair when it’s already four against three.”  Slamming the radio down on the guard’s head, Tracer turned around and threw it in the face of the first guard, the man crying out as the radio slammed into his nose . Focusing back on the guard that was still in the control room, she hauled him out and threw him into his buddy. Grinning, Tracer walked out and smiled as she heard Bolin and Asami run over from the stairs. “Took you two long enough.”

Asami tried to slow her breathing. “Sorry, had to set up the lobby.” Bolin panted, leaning his arm against the nearest wall.

Tracer chuckled, nodding to one of the men. Asami chi blocked him unconscious as well, Tracer hauling the remaining guard up. “Alright mister, you’re gonna open the servers up for us.” The guard nodded, leading the trio to the server rooms on the floor above. Unlocking the door Tracer took out the flash drive they’d all gotten from Xanatos’ people. Pulling out a console, Tracer noticed Asami staring in awe at the room. “Looks impressive doesn’t it?”

“These are all computers?” Asami touched one of the towers. “What are these all for?”

“Depends on what KaneCo needs them to do,” Tracer said, popping the flash drive in as Bolin kept the guard under control .  “They can store information, handle communication between the company’s computers and telephones, even make sure the wrong people can’t get into KaneCo’s system .”

“Wow,” Asami whispered. “If I had access to one of these…” She froze as she was about to touch it. “ How many people could lose their jobs because of it? ”

Tracer clapped her hands. “Alright, the data’s moving now. We’ll tie these fools up and then be on our way in a few minutes.”

Asami nodded, staring at the server with nervous eyes.

* * *

The two guards at the development facility saw the woman walking their way, and were only half paying attention when the lights went dead. Before either one of them could react they were flying through the air as the ground under them shot up. They didn't get the chance to scream, the air around them started to spin. They landed hard on the parking lot, then before they could stand got electrocuted unconscious.

Korra ran up to the two and encased them in the pavement. “Wow. You think we were too rough with them?”

Running up to her, Mako shook his head. “Doubt it. Plus, we didn't burn them.” Rushing the door, Mako stuck his forefinger out and light a small flame out of the tip of his finger next to the latch. “We won’t have very long. If someone like this is so paranoid that he puts an entire city in glass apartments? His company would know if they lost power to a building like this.”

Korra nodded, grabbing her radio. “Reinhardt, we’re moving into the building. You okay?”

Reinhardt chuckled. “ I’m ready and waiting Korra. ”

Korra grinned as Mako started melting around the lock. “Call you if we need you big guy.”

The door swung open, revealing a small reception area and an office area behind a fogged glass partition . The area was dark except for the dim emergency lighting that came on with the loss of power. Moving toward the back of the office, Mako and Korra saw a small door with a keypad set to the side. Lighting his finger again, Mako welded through the handle on the door as fast as he could. Korra kept her arms up, ready to firebend at any threat coming their way.

Mako pushed the door open and slipped inside the research facility proper. Their mission was simple; destroy everything and leave no remains. The research section was roughly divided into four sections from what Mako could see. One had several robotic designs laid out on the tables, small drones in various states of disassembly. One had a scale model of the apartments they saw from Motorcity, a squat glass cube that left nothing hidden. In the back was a bank of equipment, Mako noticed there were what looked like cameras in section of wall. His best guess, those hologram things. A small section in the back was one of the most important sections; eight jet-black, towering servers. Each of them still lit up by emergency batteries designed to keep the data inside alive. Everything else he and Korra could destroy without issue, but first the servers. “Korra?” Korra grunted. “Let’s let loose.” Planting his feet and grounding himself, Mako wound up and sent a massive lightning strike at the eight servers. Korra grinned, ripping up massive chunks of the building’s foundation and using the pieces to crush the prototypes.

* * *

Genji watched as the small smart car rolled up to the house. Which is why it caught him off guard as he watched a broad-chested, red-haired, clean shaven man step out in a light blue shirt and jeans. Sighing, he walked into his house with a broad grin on his face. Moving carefully up the chimney, Genji adjusted his hearing.

“-Addy!”

“Hey sweetheart,” Kane said, laughing as he sounded like he picked his daughter up off the floor in a bear hug. “How was school today?”

“We learned about trees today daddy,” Julie said. “Teacher even said that we’re going to the park next week.”

“You are?” There was a pause. “Honey?”

“I told her you’d think about it,” the female voice said. “Long day?”

“A few problems we had to work out at the development facility,” Kane said, grunting as Genji heard him settle into a chair . There was another long pause. “What park is her teacher thinking of going to?”

“Pickney honey,” the female voice said. “Three of the parents are going to chaperone too, we can at least let her have this.”

Kane groaned. “I’d like to, but-” There was a vibration, a phone. Kane's tone shifted. “I have to go, something’s happened at the offices.”

“Aw, daddy!”

“I’m sorry Julie, but daddy has something to take care of at work.” There was the sound of two quick pecks on two cheeks. “I’ll see you both tomorrow morning, I promise.”

Genji moved to the edge of the roof, watching as a shadow came to the front door. He watched the man leave the house and move for the car, already putting his phone to his ear.  That was when Genji jumped, tackling Kane from two-stories above and sending the villain sprawling onto the driveway . “What the-”

Genji put his blade to Kane’s neck. “Say nothing more, or your final memory your daughter will have of you is your body bleeding out before her.” Kane’s eyes went wide. “You are Abraham Kane?” Kane nodded. “You will come with us.”

Kane glared behind him. “And if I don’t?”

“Then I will leave you and take my blade to your wife and daughter.” Kane’s eyes went wide. It was clear to Genji he was a man who had never been in such a position before. As the CEO realized his situation, Genji tapped on the side of his head. “Pharah, bring the car now, we have him.”

Headlights came from down the street, and the rental car rolled up to the house. Pharah and the mercenaries jumped out, guns drawn as they ran to Genji. That was when Genji saw it, one of the mercenaries raising his weapon toward the house. “Pharah, behind you!”

Pharah spun around and decked the mercenary, putting her boot into the right knee of the second that had come with her .  She turned back to the first and slammed her boot hard into his face, then finished by slamming her fist into the face of the second . Turning to look up at the house, she froze as she saw the small face of Julie Kane staring out in terror at the scene.

Genji hauled Kane up, keeping his short sword at the man’s neck. “Hurry, we need to leave!”

Pharah shook out of her shock and nodded. “You two, move it!” Grabbing the shirts of both mercenaries she pulled them up and shoved them at the car. Turning back, she saw the girl turn back into the house and shout out, “Mommy!” Seeing a shadow move toward the front of the house, Pharah raised her pistol and fired at the second floor. The girl screamed, her mother pulling her inside before sprinting for the car. She watched as Genji shoved Kane into the trunk of the car, making it sag heavy in the back. “Oh come on!” Jumping into the driver’s seat, she gunned the engine and peeled away from the street as front porch lights started coming on.

* * *

Tracer laughed, watching as the computer started to glitch out. “That’s it, files downloaded and the system is wiping itself clean.”

Asami nodded, watching over Tracer’s shoulder as the servers destroyed themselves. Only she noticed something. A small object moving in the top left corner of the screen over a stylized icon of a computer. She tried to remember what it could be from what the movies and shows they’d watched, but nothing came to mind.  As the computer screen glitched and small black boxes appeared showing lines of code, she noticed the small object drift down to the symbol for the Internet, then vanish before the screen turned blue . “Now?”

“Now,” Tracer said. “Bolin, turn these servers to slag.” Bolin nodded, turning the three chunks of asphalt he’d gotten into three burning balls of magma.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

* * *

As Genji hauled Kane out of the trunk, Pharah grabbed the mercenary that had aimed at the house. “What the hell were you thinking!”

The mercenary grabbed back. “She was a witness, she can tell them what we look like-”

“She is a child!” Pharah slammed the merc into the car. “I never told you to attack her, we are only after her father!”  
  


The merc shoved back, almost putting Pharah off balance. “Well we got her father, what else did you want! Now we’ll have the FBI on us until we get outta this city!”  
  


“Let go!” Daring to look right, Pharah saw Mercy holding her blaster at the merc. “Let her go right now or I’ll show you how much pain the human body can take.” The merc threw his hands off, still glaring at Pharah. Pharah let go, tossing him back into the car for good measure. “The other two teams are coming back now, both objectives complete.”  
  


“Perfect.” Pharah said, waiting for the mercs to go inside before she and Mercy went in. “Thanks.”  
  


“Don’t expect me to do it again,” Mercy said, holstering her blaster. “I don’t think I want to try that again.”  
  


“Well we’re leaving them behind,” Pharah said, her voice low. “I don’t trust any of them to have my back when we get to the Axiom. We’ll wait for the others to get back, then we’ll grab the Humvees and strike out on our own. We’ll leave Kane with the Detroit police. With Korra destroying the research facility, and Tracer grabbing the data onto his office servers his company will have to start from scratch. Detroit Deluxe won’t exist, and Xanatos loses his competition.”  
  


Mercy checked that Genji and Brigitte were guarding Kane before taking Pharah to the side. “Tell me something, and be honest. Are we actually turning Kane in to the authorities?”  
  


“Not a chance,” Pharah said. “We know Xanatos has the FBI and government under his thumb. If we keep this local? This should keep Xanatos from getting any use out of him.”  
  


“Then we need to move,” Genji said, gripping his blade. “What should we do about them?”  
  


“Leave them in play,” Pharah said. “They can answer to Xanatos for their stupidity. Once the other two teams return we turn the data over to the OWCA after this is over. I’ll have a talk with our guest.” Walking through the warehouse and ignoring Xanatos’ employees, Pharah saw Kane in a small metal chair with Brigitte glaring down at him. He wasn’t like how he looked in the show. This Kane was younger, with a full head of red hair and a clean-shaven face. His eyes weren't sunken, and his cheeks weren't hollowed from time.  
  


“So, you’re the one in charge,” he said, glaring at Pharah. “Tell me something. Do you always going around threatening to shoot innocent children, or am I a special case?”  
  


“Oh you’re special alright,” Pharah said. Grabbing a spare chair she spun it around, laying her arms over the top as she sat across from Kane. “Tell me, what about Detroit Deluxe makes it so special?”

Kane’s eyes narrowed. “How’d you find out about Deluxe?”

“The same way we found out where to find your offices, your development facility.” Pharah grinned. “It’s all open for anyone willing to look for it.”  
  


Kane folded his arms across his chest. “Should this impress me? You people kidnapped me, threatened to kill my daughter and wife.”  
  


“I saved your daughter and wife,” Pharah said, glaring at Kane again. “If you want to live through the night to see them again you’ll do as we say.”  
  


“I’ll do as you say,” Kane said, chuckling as he did. “Why should I believe you?”  
  


“Because we don’t have any reason to kill you yet,” Pharah said. “We destroyed your research, killing you does us no good. Once we’ve finished what we set out to do, we’ll let you go.”  
  


Kane shook his head. “You expect me to believe that? Fine, I’ll play along for now.” That was when he leaned forward, glaring straight into Pharah’s soul. “Until my family is in danger again.”  
  


Pharah leaned back. She didn’t have to play at unimpressed, she was. “We’ll see.”

* * *

It hadn’t taken long for the Detroit Police to arrive, soon followed by the FBI once they learned it was a kidnapping. Mrs. Kane sat downstairs on the couch, holding her daughter as the FBI agent in charge paced the room. “Now, let’s see if I have this straight ma’am. Your husband comes home after a long day at the office. He walks in, greets you both, then gets a call that something happened at his office. He walks out the door, then as your daughter runs to the door to call goodbye to him she sees him being taken away.”  
  


Mrs. Kane nodded. “Yes, that’s what I saw Agent…”  
  


“Sadusky, Special Agent Sadusky.” The man smiled at her, sitting across from her on a sofa. He flipped open a small notebook as several agents worked on setting up for potential phone traces. “Tell me, did you husband have any enemies, anyone who’d want to hurt him?”  
  


Mrs. Kane paused, running the question through her mind. “Well, I mean Abe’s always driven in his business. But enemies? No, no one would ever go this far.”  
  


“And did you get a good look at the suspects?” Mrs. Kane shook her head, and Sadusky looked to Julie. “What about you kiddo?” Julie nodded. “You saw who was out there?”  
  


“Uh-huh,” Julie said, still clinging to her mother. “It was the green robot.”  
  


Two of the agents looked at each other, but Sadusky nodded. “I see. The green robot, did he have anyone helping him?”  
  


“A lady,” Julie said.  
  


“What’d this lady look like?”  
  


“She had brown skin, and black hair,” Julie paused for a moment. “She had something on her eye.”  
  


Sadusky pointed on his face. “Which eye, right or left?” Julie pointed to the right. “Did it look like she’d been hurt?” Julie shook her head. “Was it a tattoo?” Julie nodded. “Was her hair long or short?”  
  


“Short,” Julie said, her voice fading as her eyes started to grow heavy.  
  


Sadusky nodded. “Alright, we’ll get your daddy back. We promise.” Nodding to Mrs. Kane, Sadusky watched as the two went upstairs before turning to one of his agents. “I want a sketch artist here to work with the girl, put out an APB for those two suspects.”  
  


“A green robot and a woman with a tattoo under her eye?”  
  


Sadusky cocked his eyebrow as he turned to the younger agent. “Specialized body armor, kid didn’t understand what she was seeing. Once the artist gets something out we can go from there.”  
  


“What about the lack of demands,” Agent Dawes asked. “No one grabs the head of a private security company from their own front lawn and doesn’t leave any demands.”  
  


“Guess all we can do is wait,” Sadusky said, leafing through some of the papers on the end table next to the sofa. Papers marked with the logo of KaneCo. “Catch up on our reading.”  
  


“Sir?” One of the junior agents came up with a Detroit PD sergeant. “Sir there’s been reports of two incidents, one at Kane’s offices and another at a development facility outside the city.”  
  


Sadusky nodded, looking more like a sage than FBI. “We should take a look at this then.”

* * *

Tracer chuckled as she tossed the flash drive up and down. It was bizarre, watching Tracer as she would be back home tossing a flash drive that belonged in SG-1's home universe. "All the data's right here. Betcha can't run your company now, can ya?"  
  


Kane shook his head. "That's what you think this is about? My company still holds contracts all over Detroit. Destroying what I had in that facility doesn't do anything either, we'll rebuild. People like you don't understand that."  
  


"Oh we understand perfectly," Asami said. "A world without privacy, without rights-"  
  


"A world with order, with safety." Kane grinned at Asami. "You really thought that the plan for Detroit Deluxe was to build over the ruins? My plan is to give the world that same safety. Once people see what they can get from the Deluxe lifestyle, all the problems of the past will vanish."  
  


Reinhardt stepped forward. "And how many people would you sacrifice to get there?"  
  


"As many as it takes," Kane said, glaring up at Reinhardt. "I'm no idealist, I know you have to crush people to make a utopia. The cost is worth it though, especially when you see the end results."  
  


Asami twitched. "And the people who work for you?"  
  


"They'd get the same benefits," Kane answered, glaring at her. "Look, I don't know what you think I am. What I'm not is the bad guy here. Look at this city, look at the country! Detroit is only one city among thousands going to rust, why shouldn't we give them new life?"  
  


Asami grabbed Kane by his shirt and tried to haul him up, but only pulled her face close to his. "You're not the one to make that choice!"  
  


"Then who will princess?" Kane's eyes narrowed as he glared at Asami. "The government can't do anything, and Xanatos is too wrapped up in his own plans. The only ones who can save this country are the ones who do it themselves."  
  


"I'd say it's a good thing we came here," Pharah said. "Korra, have your team tear the warehouse down. Knock out or neutralize anyone that isn't on our team." She grinned as she turned to Korra. "Make it look good."  
  


Korra nodded, putting two balls of flame above her fists before walking into the command center. "Hey, so quick question. Do all mercenaries suck or only you guys?"  
  


The mercenaries raised their weapons, but their shots were clumsy. Korra dodged the laser beams flying her way and blew apart the monitors. The Xanatos exployees tried to run, but Bolin dropped the concrete from under them. Mako sent bolts of lightning into every piece of electronic equipment he could find. The warehouse filled with the stink of burning plastic and ozone from the lasers.  
  


Kane stared at the carnage. "What on earth..." He turned to Asami. "You people have a problem with me but they're fine?"  
  


Asami glared down at the man. "Before you say anything else? That's my girlfriend out there."  
  


Between Korra liquifying the floor, Bolin imprisoning people in concrete, and Mako knocking them out, the warehouse was clear. The employees struggled to escape, twisting in stone if they weren't unconscious. The teams piled into the Humvees, taking three and peeling out into the night.  
  


"So what's the plan now?" Kane was still smiling, despite Reinhardt's hand gripping his shoulder. "You might have some kind of crazy magic on your side, but it's not like you can drop me off at the police station."  
  


"You're right," Tracer said, smiling into the rearview mirror. "What we are gonna do is drop you off at the nearest on-ramp."  
  


"Oh, I'm liking where this is going. Tell me something, why don't you want me to go to Xanatos? Hoping I'll ruin him for you?"  
  


"Please, you won't go to the police." Tracer kept her Humvee behind Pharah and just ahead of Mercy. "The legal battle would never end, and Xanatos could crush you with an army of lawyers and an ocean of red tape." Tracer grinned back at Kane. "You're nothing but a game to him."  
  


"Think of this as a warning," Reinhardt said. "We don't like Xanatos any more than you do, but we appreciate sabotaging his efforts. If, for example, the mercenaries he hired tried to kill you because you resisted..."  
  


"And I got out thanks to some of those same mercenaries..." Kane nodded. "Alright, fine. I get out alive, you people still get what you want from Xanatos. After all, who'd believe you people used magic to do half of what you did to those jerks."  
  


"Now you're seeing it our way," Tracer said. "You'll be back to your family by morning, no problem. As long as you stick to that story."  
  


"Don't worry, they'll listen to me over the words of some dumb mercs." Kane grinned as he watched them fly through another empty neighborhood. "What I won't do is agree with anything you think you're fighting for. Someone needs to do something to stop this city from getting worse."  
  


"We are," Reinhardt said. "You need to give us time, then there will be no need for Detroit Deluxe." The look in Kane's eyes when he heard that didn't reassure Reinhardt.  
  


"Head's up, your stops coming." Tracer gunned the engine as they came up to the interstate. "Now remember, you be a good little CEO and we won't bother you anymore. Reinhardt, if you could?" Reinhardt grinned, and before Kane could ask what was happening his door was open. With a shout Abraham Kane went flying onto the shoulder of the road, Reinhardt laughing as the Humvees rolled onto I-90.  
  


In the passenger seat, Mako sighed. "He's gone, now what?"  
  


"We sabotaged him enough," Tracer said, pulling the flash drive from her jacket. "Without his information, KaneCo won't have the money or time to build Deluxe. Melt it down, and send it flying out the window." Mako nodded, tossing the drive in the air before sending it screaming out the window with his firebending.  
  


Pharah came over the radio. "_Is everyone alright?_"  
  


"Fine here," Tracer radioed. "So what's the plan?"  
  


"_Chicago is still under threat,_" Pharah said. "_Let's go and free the city from that malfunctioning menace._"  
  


Bolin's voice came over the radio. "_Oh, nice one. Taking lessons from McCree?_"

Tracer hit the transmitter. "Oi, I'm the one with the wordplay thank you!"


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

* * *

The ride out of Detroit was quiet for the night. Come morning, the Humvees had pulled over outside of South Bend to clear their heads and get some food.

"Now we know Chicago has been destroyed by the Axiom," Pharah said, drawing on a road map she lifted from the rest stop. "Our best guess is that the Axiom is sending out robots to draw resources from the surrounding area. Getting to the city itself won't be an issue, getting to the Axiom is our problem."

"The ship's massive though," Mako said, taking a bite out of a half-ripe banana. It was the only food they could find inside that wasn't filled with sugar or salt. "How are we supposed to find the way to AUTO?"

Pharah took out her phone and slid it forward. The picture on it was of the Axiom, a rough map more designed for anyone that would be on it. "The captain's quarters should roughly be at this point. Korra, if you can get yourself and Tracer up there we can disable the system and get those people off the Axiom."

"Well that all sounds good," Asami said. "What about when they're free? Those people on board are all lumps of fat, and without the mercs we have no way of telling Xanatos if we succeeded or not."

"Not necessarily," Pharah said, nodding to the Humvees. "Xanatos isn't a fool. He would've expected us to do something like this once we grabbed Kane. If we check the vehicles over we'll have a good chance of finding a GPS tracker. Ignoring the fact that the Axiom has excellent communications equipment. We can handle getting the message out to the OWCA, the key is making sure the people aboard don't get hurt." Looking up, she noticed that everyone but Mercy seemed focused. "Angela? Are you alright?"

Mercy blinked. "Oh? Sorry, I was thinking about something. Did Det. Maza mention how long ago Chicago went quiet?" No one could give an answer. "Then we don't know the timeframe."

Asami spoke up. "Timeframe? What do you mean?"

"The passengers' physical state," Mercy said. "It took generations for the people aboard to grow to such a condition. Now, they're back on earth and experiencing gravity. If that's the case, they'd be experiencing innumerable health complications."

Bolin sipped at his water. "What do you mean?"

"Even with the artificial gravity aboard the ship, the passengers have changed. Over time they've nearly become a subspecies of mankind, suited to living on the ship in artificial gravity as opposed to a planet."

"Only from what the report said they one they found was fine until he had to move." Pharah thought over the idea for a second. "You think it might have something to do with the universes merging?"

"Possible, but not for sure." Mercy tapped on the phone. "Worse, there are thousands of people aboard that ship. This can turn it from a simple health emergency into a borderline-humanitarian crisis. We're presuming that Xanatos would care enough to help these people after all."

"Fair," Pharah said. "We'll contact Det. Maza and Xanatos at the Indiana border. Maza can at least organize to keep an eye on Xanatos in New York while Xanatos collects from the ship." She grinned. "After we make sure to trash what he isn't allowed to use." Everyone but Mercy grinned at the idea.

* * *

Sadusky sat across from Kane in the FBI office, pouring himself a cup of coffee in the interview room. Dawes had positioned herself by the door, glaring at Kane. "Would you like some?"

"No, thank you," Kane said, waving off the cup. "Never been a big fan of coffee, too bitter for my taste."

"How about kidnapping," Sadusky said. "Must be a pretty bitter taste after what you've been through?"

"My house shot at, my wife and daughter inside? You'd better believe I'm bitter." He leaned forward on the table. "So why am I still here?"

"We always conduct interviews like this after a kidnapping sir," Dawes said. "Though this is the first time I've ever seen kidnappers turn on each other like this. Don't suppose you'd know why?"

"I told you, I don't know what happened. Some of the kidnappers started shooting. The others decided they didn't want to go through with the plan after that, dumped me off the highway." Kane leaned back again. "Now I find out that they hit my offices and my development facility too."

"Yeah, that was quite the facility." Sadusky leaned back and sipped at his coffee. "Never seen anything quite like it, what you had going in there."

"Well don't get any ideas," Kane said, grinning. "That work is all proprietary. Even damaged as I've heard it is, I'm still owner."

"That's fine, I'm good with my government paycheck anyway." Sadusky grinned. "After all you're giving it to me."

Dawes stepped toward the table. "Mr. Kane, why would anyone go after you and your business?"

"Take your pick," Kane said. "I've got rivals, I've got people whose crimes I've stopped, being in my position I'm not exactly popular."

Sadusky grinned as he took another sip of coffee. "Doesn't make much sense to me."

Kane glared at Sadusky. "Look, you can imagine I'm pretty worn out after the last few hours. Even if I go back home I'll still be fielding calls and emails into the night."

"We will put a protection detail around your house sir," Sadusky said. "Something this organized, they might have a plan to try again. Agent Dawes, please call someone to escort Mr. Kane to his home?"

Dawes nodded, but opened the door to reveal another man. Sadusky turned to see him wearing a brown trenchcoat and Buddy Holly glasses. In his hands were a flat cap and a manila envelope. "Agent Sadusky? I'm Special Agent Hacker, I'm here to take custody of Mr. Kane."

Kane shot out of his chair, slamming his hands on the table. "What!"

Sadusky was more sanguine, getting up and taking the envelope from Hacker. Opening it, he pulled out a Federal writ to take Kane into custody. "It's legal. Mr. Kane, you're under arrest under suspicion of insider trading and embezzelment. Agent Dawes, please explain Mr. Kane's rights." Folding the writ back up and pocketing it, he glared at Hacker as two more agents in black suits walked up. "I don't think I'm asking too much to get updates on him once he gets to his destination?"

Hacker kept that same polite smile as a cuffed Kane got turned over to the two black-suited agents. "Agent Sadusky, Agent Dawes."

As Hacker walked off, Dawes slammed the door. "This is ridiculous."

"Dawes-"

"You got the Declaration back, but they're still treating everyone involved in that operation like this." Dawes grabbed the still-free cup and poured herself some coffee. "How do you put up with this?"

Sadusky shrugged, sipping at his cup. "I don't really mind, means less work in my inbox."

"Well I'm glad you're taking this well," Dawes growled. "Would've helped if they'd told us he was under investigation anyway. We could've at least tried to salvage some evidence from his office."

"Yeah," Sadusky said, his thumb running over the ring on his right hand. "Would've been nice to know about."

* * *

"_So you let him live?_"

"We didn't have a reason to kill him." Pharah kept her sunglasses on as she called from the payphone. Which was a miracle since it was the first one she'd found. "_Thank God for rural America._"

"_Well Bluestone's trying to keep an eye on the FBI blotter, but right now there's nothing. We're trying to keep an eye on Xanatos but the clan and the department are both trying to keep a gang war from breaking out. Turns out Sykes was keeping more than his own family in check._"

"At least Xanatos still has some competition then," Pharah said. "We're about to cross into Illinois, shouldn't take us long to get to Chicago after that. Once we're finished we'll go back to the SGC, expect us back in roughly two months."

"_Got it. Thanks for the heads up about this. And telling us that Xanatos is about to move on Chicago. We owe you._"

Pharah grinned. "That makes it three, but who's counting? See ya." Hanging up, Pharah walked back to the rest stop to see Bolin and Mako trying to learn soccer from Reinhardt. So far, all they'd accomplished was learning how to trip over themselves and fall on their faces. Asami laughed on the sidelines as Korra tried to figure out how to control the ball. Genji watched from inside the Humvee, meditating as Tracer raced around the grass. while Brigitte played goalie.

"I suppose we needed this," Mercy said, watching as Mako tried to kick a goal. Brigitte made an easy catch and tossed it back to Reinhardt as Mako groaned. "Reminds me of when you had Jesse try to teach you baseball."

Pharah laughed. "He was a terrible teacher, Jack had to come in and actually show me what to do."

Mercy giggled. "You said you thought the cowboy hat meant he had to be good at baseball."

"No I didn't," Pharah said, giving Mercy a playful push. "Besides, don't you remember that day Jack had that match between Overwatch and Blackwatch? Jack and the others got their asses handed to them by Gabe in soccer."

"I do remember Jack and Gabe needing to come in for some bruising on their ankles," Mercy said. "Thank God they weren't wearing kleats that day." The two went silent for a moment, memories flooding back of before Overwatch fell apart. Mercy finally spoke up. "Your mother, have you...Have you gotten any more letters?"

Pharah shook her head. "I guess she's waiting for me to make the next move."

More silence for a few moments. "You know that she wasn't trying to hurt you," Mercy said. "All she wanted was to protect you. Whatever forces are out there, we know that they're more dangerous than we ever imagined."

"Not anymore," Pharah said. "Once we start recruiting again we'll force Talon into the open. That will force this conspiracy to act before they're ready. Once we pull them into the light we can finally get the answers we're all looking for."

Mercy looked up at Pharah's face, full of determination. She couldn't believe how much the once adorable little girl had grown. The first time she'd met Pharah again after Overwatch had recalled, she couldn't believe it. In the place of the small, smiling daughter of Ana Amari was a strong, confident soldier. Which made it all the more awkward thinking about her feelings. Did Pharah feel the same? How would everyone else react if she decided to tell Pharah how she felt? She didn't even know if Pharah would reciprocate.

Parker was already bad enough to Korra and Asami, even if he had decided to accept that they were a couple. What would happen in a universe where homosexuality wasn't allowed, or worse hunted? Three dimensions still had political leaders who were against it, and they were still part of the MVTF-

"I miss it."

Mercy snapped out of her mental runabout. "What?"

"The old Overwatch," Pharah said, staring with wistful eyes as the others played. "I know it's nostalgia talking though. I miss whenever Torbjörn would get into an argument with Winston. Or Gabe trying to surprise me with a new outfit, he was always terrible at hiding when he made them." She hung her head. "He used to make such great outfits."

"He did," Mercy said, smiling at the memories. "Remember that time Jack had to tell him not to bring his supplies into the base?"

"And then he got around it by putting them in as official requisitions," Pharah said, laughing. Another round of silence. "We'll have to face him." Mercy nodded. "Jack too. And my mother."

Mercy smiled, reaching her hand out. She started to reach for Pharah's hand, but instead went for the shoulder. "We'll face it together...as a team." Pharah turned to smile at Mercy. "The entire task force will back us up too, we both know they will."

Pharah smiled again. "Thanks Angela. Hey, let's go help out Korra and the brothers. They definitely need it."

Mercy nodded, following Pharah to join the game. Asami sat quiet nearby, watching the whole affair with careful eyes.

* * *

Fox watched as the objective got sealed up and prepped for transport. As far as the rest of the world would know, it was a semi hauling another load of fine Xanatos products. The rest would come, in time. The only question was when. Driving out of the restricted area, she got out of her rad suit and went to the comm tent. Checking that everything was still going to plan, she called her husband. "We have it David, what about Detroit?"

"_Like clockwork my dear,_" Xanatos said. "_The MVTF is still off on their mission, as long as they are we can proceed._"

"I'm still confused though," Fox said, watching as her men sealed the container. "Why not go to San Fransokyo for this?"

"_San Fransokyo has no experts anymore, not without Callaghan. Our expert will find sufficient motiviation regardless. Oh, do you want to say hi to Alexander?_" She heard her son giggling on the other end of the phone. "_Say hi to mommy Alexander!_" More giggling. Fox smiled as the truck started to roll out.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

* * *

Korra noticed it as soon as they crossed over the Illinois border. Something was different about the grass on the side of the highway. It was thinner, there was more dirt visible between the blades. The trees looked sickly too, almost barren the further they drove. There were fewer cars as they drove, replaced with more empty towns and decaying streets. "Didn't we leave Detroit?"  
  


"Chicago is the largest city in Chicago, the economic engine of the state." Pharah passed by another barely-maintained corner story in a dying town. "Without it, the rest of the state is dying."  
  


"A tumor," Mercy said. "It takes without giving any benefit to the body. Even if we excise it there's no guarantee that we can save Illinois."  
  


"We can try," Pharah said, grabbing the radio. "Reinhardt, Genji, we'll stop in..." She pulled out the map of Chicago she'd grabbed. "Roseland. We'll set camp there for the night and set a watch, I want to go into the city proper fresh and prepared."  
  


"You're worried the ship might try to ambush us?" Korra shook her head. "Why would it risk the passengers? Those security robots might not even be able to attack people. Wouldn't there be some kind of safety switch or something?"  
  


"We thought the same thing about Omnics," Mercy said. There was a haunted look in her eyes. "No one imagined that Omnics would attack mankind the way they did. Omnica assured the world that there would be no danger from them."  
  


"But they still attacked," Korra said. "You think this AUTO thing might find a way around whatever stops him?"  
  


"And the other robots aboard," Pharah said. "Worse, the humans have their chairs equipped with energy weapons. AUTO might not even need to have his security robots kill any intruders. His 'game' encourages the passengers to do it themselves."  
  


Korra kept staring out the window. "I don't understand. Why didn't people realize what was happening aboard the ship? Didn't they notice they were getting fatter? They were being treated like babies?"  
  


"You saw the movie," Mercy said, in a defeated tone. "They were always catered to, always taken care of. There were no problems, no threats. Each day you live in paradise, the less you realize what you have."  
  


Korra thought about what was happening in Republic City. Of the people suffering in the slums and tenements compared to how she and Asami were living in the mansion. "_Am I not seeing how bad it is? Spirits, am I getting fat too?_"  
  


The Humvees drove on through a land growing less-green each second.

* * *

They finally made their camp deep into Roseland, parking outside an abandoned restaurant. There was a rocket atop it, Pharah said it was a "Pizza Planet". Curiostiy got the better of Korra, and as soon as she figured out when she would have to stand watch she went inside.  
  


The interior looked like a relic of another time. There were cabinets, Korra guess that once they were bright and colorful. Now, it looked like nature had taken the toll. There were small TV screen inside, with control on the front. They looked like simpler versions of what Korra had seen for the MALPs in the SGC. Sand had started to creep inside, coating the dark carpet in a light cover. To the rear, there was a small, clear rocket with a mechanical arm hanging inside. Walkign over, Korra looked in to see a few green toys inside of what she guess were aliens.  
  


"Hey." Turning, Korra saw Asami walking in behind her. "Couldn't resist either, huh?"  
  


"Nah," Korra said, reaching inside the broken plastic. "So, you okay?"  
  


"I don't know," Asami said, leaning against a cabinet. She noticed that the art was of a man with massive fists breaking bricks. "Everything we saw in Detroit, if we're not careful that's our future."  
  


"Not it isn't," Korra said, moving to Asami. "You saw this, and you can find out how it happened. You can make sure it won't happen to Republic City or anywhere else."  
  


"I can try," Asami said. "If I'm lucky I still have some pull with the other companies. What I did to make them accept SG-1's designs took away a lot of my bargaining power."  
  


Korra grinned sauntering up to Asami. "So, does the Avatar need to step in to help convince them?"  
  


Asami shook her head and smiled. "That might not convince them. Still, I appreciate the offer."  
  


Korra started tossing one of the aliens from inside the machine up and down. "Well, at least we managed to stop Xanatos from getting what he wanted. Don't see why Campbell and his team are so worried about him, he doesn't seem like a Varrick."  
  


"Neither did I." Asami started walking the empty arcade some more. Going through the rows, she saw a steering wheel and a seat.  
  


"You aren't," Korra said, walking over as Asami sat in the seat. "Is that why you've been so down since Detroit?"  
  


"It's more than that," Asami said, gripping the wheel. "Look at how Kane was living. Then look at how the rest of the city was."  
  


Korra nodded. "I did think about something Mercy said. Keep people fat and distracted, they won't notice the world around them." Both women fell quiet. "Are we getting fat, Asami?"  
  


Asami let out a snerk, and soon both of them were laughing at the idea. Pulling herself back, Asami shook her head. "No, we aren't. If we were Mako and Bolin definitely would tell us."  
  


Korra nodded, tossing the alien up and down some more. "That still means you're worried about what it means for Republic City."  
  


Asami nodded. "Blocking off neighborhoods, leaving people to starve and beg. Aang founded the United Republic to be a place where people could have a chance to live. I can't let it become a place where that means making money at the cost of others."  
  


"You won't," Korra said. "Overwatch saw this happen before, they can tell us what can help to stop it. SG-1 has all that technology, they can share it to make sure people don't get sick. Plus, isn't there an election coming soon? Raiko's a jerk but he won't be president forever."  
  


Asami grinned. "You're saying I should run?"  
  


Korra shrugged. "I won't stop you. It'd put a dent in our time together though."  
  


Asami smiled, stepping up off the chair and walking over to Korra. "Well, we wouldn't want that would we."  
  


Korra tossed the toy alien aside. "Course, it'd be interesting to see what we could do in the president's office."  
  


"Well aren't you adventurous," Asami said. "Wasn't it only a few months ago you were afraid to even hold my hand around the city?"  
  


"I'm the Avatar," Korra said, as Asami tilted her chin up. "If I can't accept change in my own life, I can't help when the world does."

Asami leaned in close. "Tenzin would be so proud."

Korra edged forward. "Don't talk about him right now."  
  


The door to the arcade burst in, and Bolin started yelling. "Asami! Korra! Reinhardt's challenging us to another soccer game! Loser buys at the diner when we get back!"  
  


Korra's head spun toward the door, Asami planting her face in the side of Korra's hair. "I'm in!"

* * *

After a round of MREs everyone settled down for the night. Reinhardt had gathered some wooden chairs from the abandoned stores and houses. Mako had no trouble lighting the fire, and soon the team was swapping stories back and forth.  
  


"So let me get this straight," Bolin said, still finishing his pudding pack. "Your dad told you this was gonna be a summer camp."  
  


Brigitte nodded. "Turns out, what he thought of as 'summer camp' was an eight-week long engineering course." Shaking her head, she finished off the bag of M&Ms as Pharah looked on with envious eyes. "My mom gave him so much grief. She couldn't do anything though, the deposit was already paid."  
  


"Came in handy though." Mako packed up his trash and put it in the Humvee. "Reinhardt must appreciate having a squire that can actually maintain his armor."  
  


"And can fight like a knight," Reinhardt said. In the deserted street his voice rolled and echoed like a storm. "I remember when she was still a girl, how she'd sit on my knee and hear my stories." He laughed at the memory. "Why you were such a little thing, no muscle at all!"  
  


Brigitte glared at Reinhardt. "Watch it old man, I could decide to leave you here."  
  


Korra shook her head, looking up to see Genji atop one of the Humvees. "You okay Genji?"  
  


"I am fine Korra," Genji said. "I am thinking about the fight to come."  
  


"We'll be fine," Tracer said. "You don't think a bunch of robots are gonna give us trouble, do you?"  
  


"That is not the fight I dwell on Lena," Genji said. "I speak of the conflict that would finally end the suffering of this world."  
  


Bolin spat out his water. "What, you mean like the end of the world?"  
  


Genji shook his head. "Bill Cipher. Such a powerful being cannot be content to sit and wait for our arrival on his doorstep. He will strike again on the next teams to come here."

"At their minds Genji," Reinhardt said, laughing as he stoked the fire. "The MVTF has teams that have suffered through all their worlds could give them. I say you underestimate them."  
  


Genji looked toward the fire. "You think the Senshi could handle what we saw in the motel?"  
  


"I know that they could." Reinhardt grinned as he looked up at the stars. He guessed it was the first time in ages the skies over Chicago had been so clear. "Where others saw a show made for young girls as a fantasy, I saw warriors. Campbell didn't believe in them, and he almost paid for his lack of faith with his team."  
  


Korra leaned forward. "We're talking about the same girls who didn't think to ask for help from people who could give it right?"  
  


Reinhardt shook his head. "Not ask for help Korra. The Senshi know that they are the only ones that can face these threats. What Campbell didn't understand, and what we must? The Senshi only limit themselves. The day they understand the power they have within is the day they secure victory."  
  


Pharah shook her head. "You must be the only one to see it old man. If I had to pick a team, annoying as he is? Parker and Dead Six."

"I hate to agree, but I do." Asami leaned back against one of the Humvees. "Parker's actually fought Kane, seen what he's capable of. He actually acts against new threats instead of reacts. He's a, what was that word Daniel used?"  
  


Tracer spoke up. "Homophobe."  
  


"That, but he's good at what he does." Asami sipped at a fresh canteen. "What if we sent Parker here next? Bill can't intimidate someone that can't be."  
  


"You're presuming he can't be." Reinhardt stood and stretched out. "All men have fears, Asami. Like Bill toyed with the minds of you and your friends, so too can he do it to a man like Parker. I say that the Senshi are the only ones who could stand against his mind tricks."  
  


"Not yet," Genji said. "Not until they reach their ultimate power."  
  


"They'll reach it sooner than you think," Reinhardt said, staring up at the sky. "They live with honor, and so will die with glory."  
  


Bolin's eyes narrowed. "Was that a compliment or a warning?"  
  


"I say we get some sleep, this is way too philosophical for me right now." Grinning, Tracer rolled up her jacket and laid down next to the fire. "Besides, we've got a big day tomorrow. Not too often you take down a spaceship full of killer robots."  
  


Mercy shook her head. "We fought an entire city of killer robots against Null Sector."

Tracer chuckled. "Yeah, but this is a spaceship! Big difference doc."  
  


Pharah shook her head. "Reinhardt? First watch."


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

* * *

By the time they reached the Southside, the team had to abandon the Humvees. The dunes were too high, and the wind was picking up. Pharah couldn't find any covers for the engines, and so a long trek through the sands began.  
  


"Incredible," Mercy said. "I remember visiting Chicago to give a lecture on biotic medical techniques. How did a city on one of the world's largest freshwater lakes turn into this?"  
  


"The Axiom must be taking all the water out of the lake." Tracer knelt down and picked up a crumbling newspaper. The last headline was something about the National Archives. "All the groundwater too. Complete desertification. It's a good thing Mei isn't here, she'd have a meltdown." The Overwatch team all turned to glare at Tracer. "Right, too soon."  
  


Korra poked her head above one of the dunes. "Heads up, think there's one of those chairs out there."  
  


Pharah hurried up and brought a pair of binoculars up. She saw it, skimming past a half-buried block of homes. It was only one chair, with one teal game robot flying alongside. Pharah nodded, sliding back behind the dune. "Alright, we have to find a way to disable that chair. If we can do that there's a chance we can draw some kind of repair drones. We follow those back to the Axiom, scout the area, then move from there."  
  


Korra shook her head. "Wouldn't they start shooting at us the second we got close?"  
  


"Reinhardt's shield can take damage long enough for you to get Tracer to the bridge. Genji and I will distract the security drones while Mako and Bolin-"  
  


The sand dune turned into a sandstorm. Korra and Pharah got tossed away, half-buried from the debris. Airbending herself clear, Korra raced to Asami. "Don't think we're stealthy anymore!"  
  


"No shit," Pharah shouted, grabbing her radio. "Does anyone have their armor on?"  
  


Brigitte radioed back. "_None of us! Should we try?_"  
  


"Won't help," Pharah shouted, drawing her pistol. "Fall back to the trucks, we'll make a stand there!"  
  


Another dune exploded behind the two as they sprinted back to the trucks. They got back in time to see Bolin creating what barriers he could. "_Thank God the sand isn't that deep,_" Pharah thought. "_Otherwise we'd be in real trouble._"  
  


Mako poked his head out over the engine block of one of the Humvees. "How'd it find you? You weren't trying to draw attention right?"  
  


"Back when I first met you I'd have agreed," Korra grumbled. "It knew we were there, I can't explain it."  
  


"I can," Pharah said. "Thermal sensors. Given the time of year we're warmer than the sand around us."  
  


Mako grinned. "So all we need is heat?"  
  


Pharah nodded, grinning back. "Blind that fat bastard."  
  


Mako and Korra nodded to each other. As the chair blew up the dune ahead of them they waited. Whatever weapon the chair used, it wasn't capable of rapid fire. Boosting herself up with airbending, Korra shouted, "Now!"  
  


Korra shot her flames out to the sides. Mako flashed his straight in front of the chair. There was an errant shot, a random blast of energy though the air. Then Korra heard the shouting.  
  


"Argh! Get offa me HLM-T!"

Cutting the flames, Korra watched as the man on the chair threw off his helmet and shook his head. Looking around, he froze at the sight before him. "Wait...What is this? This isn't the game!"  
  


Korra airbent herself toward the man. "Hey! Who are you!"  
  


The man blinked, terrified of the woman glaring him down. "I-I-I'm Michael?"  
  


Korra's eyebrow went up. "Well did you realize you were shooting at people a few seconds ago?"  
  


"I was?" Michael looked around the barren wasteland, a slow realization dawning over his face. "Wait, where are we?"  
  


"Earth," Mako said, jogging up. "Where'd you think?"  
  


"What!" Michael spun his chair around, his teal game robot buddy beeping in alarm. "We're on Earth!? That's impossible, this is all supposed to be part of the game!"  
  


Mako walked over to the helmet, only to find it beeping and trying to right itself. Staring at the thing, he was careful as he pulled it out of the sand. "What do you mean?"  
  


"It- It happened a while ago! The ship put out a game, something we could do so we wouldn't get bored." Michael stared at a half-buried convenience store. "Man, Earth is a lot less beautiful than I heard."  
  


Mako glared at the man. "Look, where's the Axiom?"  
  


"The Axiom?" Michael looked puzzled at the question. "I...I don't know. I was playing the game, I thought I was still on the Axiom!"  
  


Korra sighed, until she realized something was beeping. Looking around, she saw part of the teal robot struggling to get out of the sand. Cringing, she airbent the sand away. The little bot went flying, righted itself, then flew over to Michael.  
  


"Beepsy?" Michael sighed. "Well, at least you're still here." Another beep, deeper, from the ground. "Oh, you too HLM-T."  
  


"Beepsy," Mako said. His mind raced back to the first report from MV-4. "Are you the same Beepsy that met a man named Lee?" A rapid-fire of excited beeps. "Okay, so you are him."  
  


Brigitte ran up, shield system strapped to her arm. "The others are getting suited up now, what happened here?"  
  


"Meeting an old friend of First Platoon," Korra said, grinning at the robot. It was square, with bright circular lights for eyes. There were four arrows on the left of its front, and two buttons beside that. "Hey, you can get us to the Axiom right?" Beepsy's two arms crossed over its body. It looked at the ground with a nervous disposition. Which amazed Korra because she didn't think a robot like that could emote. "Are you afraid to?" Beepsy nodded.  
  


"Wait," Brigitte said. "Remember, the rogue robots? You got sent there." Beepsy turned away. "He lost his human, he got turned in as a rogue robot."  
  


"Well we can protect you," Korra said. "You saw what we did to Michael a few seconds ago, there's no way we couldn't do the same."  
  


Michael's jaw dropped. "You were a rogue robot?"  
  


"He wasn't," Mako said, glaring at Michael. "Now, he's gonna lead us all back to the Axiom." Michael withered under the glare, Korra swore the man lost three pounds shuddering. Mako grabbed his radio. "Pharah, we've got a lead on how to get to the ship."

* * *

Reinhardt trudged along behind Michael. If AUTO's directive was to protect the passengers, then Michael was more than safe at the lead. In the distance, he could see more chairs hovering through what was once Chicago. The dunes had half-buried the city now, if it wasn't the piled cubes of garbage doing the job. Tracer wasn't all wrong. If Mei came to this universe it would more than likely devastate her.  
  


Beepsy started calling out. "We must be getting close," Pharah said. "Reinhardt, you'll be our anchor. Distract them, make sure you draw their fire and attention. Shouldn't be too hard for you. Brigitte, plug the holes where you need to. Bolin, do you think you can give us additional cover?"  
  


Bolin stared at the towering stacks of garbage. "Uh, yeah, sure."  
  


Beepsy flew in front of Pharah and started beeping like he was nervous. "I understand you're scared. I promise, we're going to stop AUTO and free everyone aboard the Axiom. We're sending two of our best up to stop him. Genji, I want you to move through the ship. Distract the security robots and keep them from getting to the bridge. Angela, stand by. Make sure no one dies today if you can help it. Any questions?"  
  


"I've got one," Michael said, trying to turn his head back. "What about me? What happens after you disable the autopilot?"  
  


"We'll put a call for aid out to the government," Pharah said. "They'll respond and make sure that you're all at least taken care of." She grinned at a thought. "_You'll have to learn to love celery though._"  
  


Beepsy started to shudder. Looking ahead, Pharah saw a dark shape looming out in the distance between the garbage stacks. "I've got it, the Axiom at about half a mile-" Beepsy shook his head. "A mile?" Another shake. Pharah's heart started to sink. "How far away?" There was a series of beeps. "Eight miles?!"

* * *

By the time they got into position, the sun was slinking below the horizon. Between the towering sand dunes and obelisks of trash, Michael's expression grew darker. "Why did you do this to me," Michael said. "This place is a nightmare, how can you want to live like this?"  
  


"It wasn't always like this," Reinhardt said. "This was a city, millions of people lived here. What destroyed it was the Axiom."  
  


"But the Axiom's the perfect place to live!" Michael grumbled as he kept floating along. "There's no trash anywhere, and the temperature's always perfect, why leave?"  
  


"The Axiom is a paradise at the expense of others," Reinhardt said. "Where do you think this trash came from? Why do you think this land is now desert?"  
  


Michael laughed. "Better reasons to stay on the Axiom then!"  
  


Korra rolled her eyes and turned to Mercy. "Is this guy for real?"  
  


Mercy sighed. "He is. His mind is being forced to process reality, and he doesn't know how to accept what he's seeing."  
  


Korra shook her head. "I don't understand. Didn't he ever take off that helmet robot? Why didn't he ever try to look around?"  
  


"We've experienced many cases like that in our time," Mercy said. "Even after decades of knowing the risk we still see accidents. People who use their phones when they drive and get into automobile accidents. Victims who get hit by cars because they didn't pay attention, they were too busy with their phones. I've read about cases where people died in their homes because all they wanted to do was play games."  
  


Korra didn't quite process what she heard at first. "Died? In their homes? It's a game, who dies because of a game?"  
  


Mercy gestured around at the stacks of garbage and dunes stretching to the horizon. "Who wants to live in a world like this?"  
  


Pharah looked up at the ever-rising sight of the Axiom ahead. The half-buried skyscrapers of Chicago were now dwarfed by the imposing edifice. The Axiom loomed above everything, the new master of the Windy City. Pharah could only guess what Xanatos would get out of the corpse of the ship. Robotics, engineering insights, but Campbell's report told the real prize. Xanatos was a businessman, everything else was a hobby. The Axiom was going to ensure his business empire, the robots were the key. Why go to a beauty salon when you had a robot who could do it for you? Why pay human welders when you could buy a hundred small welding robots that didn't need pay? If people were losing their jobs, they only needed to retrain to get a better one. New universe, same refrain. Beepsy started to sound nervous. "What is it?" Beepsy pointed ahead. Adjusting the sights on her helmet, Pharah saw it. A group of hoverchairs floating together. Only the people on them weren't actually looking at each other, not even from five feet away. They all stared at the HUDs displayed by their helmets, lit up holograms in the fading light.  
  


Pharah turned to Korra. "Can you go into your avatar state?"  
  


Mercy stepped forward. "Pharah she can't! Twice she's used it and twice she's suffered for using it."  
  


"Only because I was up against an immortal magic-eating dragon," Korra said, side-eyeing Mercy. "I can handle AUTO, all Tracer needs to do is hang on tight."  
  


Tracer grinned and grabbed her radio. "Tracer to Asami, permission to hold your girl tight, over?"  
  


"_Asami to Tracer, only as long as you remember you have your own girl waiting for you back home, over._"  
  


"Korra, I know you want to disable the Axiom." Mercy stepped in front of the Avatar. "I only want to make sure you don't harm yourself. Remember what you told Parker in Magnolia? What happens if you injure yourself to the point you can't help your friends anymore?"  
  


Korra's eyebrow went up as she looked over at Michael. "Gee, I'm real worried about our odds."  
  


"It's our best chance to end this without mass casualties," Pharah said. Looking ahead, she saw that the bottom section of the Axiom was either demolished or buried in the former Lake Michigan. Hoverchairs scurried about like roaches at the base. Pharah hoped they'd scatter when the lights came on. "Reinhardt, light it up."

* * *

The two passengers floated along, looking bored as they talked to each other on their screens outside the ship. Even as they floated not two inches away from each other. "So, want to try the north quarter?"  
  


"Nah, no enemies are there anymore. What about the beached ships?"  
  


"No, those got cleared out weeks ago."  
  


An explosion drew their attention away. Spinning their chairs around, they laughed at the sight. "New enemies!" The chairs gathered around the Axiom hurried off, their robot companions beeping in confusion. Tracer grinned as she turned to Genji atop one of the trash piles. "You're good, move in."  
  


Genji sprinted through the Mag Mile, straight for what was Lake Michigan and the Axiom. He watched as hundreds of chairs streamed out of the ship, floating out of every porthole and hatch. None of them even noticed him as he ran up. Scanning the side of the ship, he let his systems calculate the best way in. He saw one of the garbage piles was tall enough that he could leap in through the lido deck. Leaping up it, he watched as more and more chairs kept streaming out. "_I hope Reinhardt's shield holds._" At the top, Genji put his last ounce of speed into his run and leapt from the top of the pile.  
  


Crashing through the window wasn't the bad part, it was the landing in the pool on the lido deck. Swimming back to the surface, Genji scrambled out of the pool and scanned the deck. He saw the bridge, observing the entire ship high above the pool and plaza. "Korra, Tracer, follow behind me. The bridge will be above the pool."  
  


Sirens. Turning, Genji saw a trio of rectangular steward bots hovering toward him. Their yellow lights flashed, and their speaker blasted, "Halt!" in a polite-yet-firm tone. Genji rose, and in one motion drew and threw his shurikens at the three. The robots sparked and fizzled, the shurikens embedded in their screens. He grinned, until he saw the horde rushing at him from all directions. "_Of course. Well, one army only needs one ninja._" Blade flashing, he charged the robots.  
  


As Genji tore the horde apart, Korra and Tracer landed on the glass above the deck. Returning from the Avatar state, Korra chuckled as she watched Genji. "Wow, Genji's having fun."  
  


"Not often he gets to let loose." Grinning, Tracer pointed to the bridge. "There it is. Can you get us over there?" Grinning, Korra sent a bolt of flame to melt the glass and airbent herself and Tracer over. Rolling with the landing, Korra jumped up and scanned the bridge to see the captain flinching. "Bridge is clear," Tracer said. "Where's AUTO?" The captain peeked through his fingers. Tracer groaned. "Yes, I'm talking to you."  
  


"Oh, well, of course! I'm the captain after all! Now...Now get off my ship!" The captain tried to point with authority, but Korra and Tracer were less than impressed. Especially with his fat arms wobbling every time he moved.  
  


"I'll see to the controls," Tracer said. "Keep an eye out for AUTO."  
  


The captain tried to hover in front of Korra. "Hang on a second you can't-" Korra grinned and airbent him out of the way. "Okay, maybe you can."  
  


Tracer scanned the wide console before her. There were large buttons, dozens of switches, and a few knobs to turn. None of them labeled. "_Bloody Disney, couldn't have actually made a proper control surface._"  
  


Korra kept scanning the ceiling, waiting for AUTO to appear. She remembered the robot looking like a ship's wheel. A giant red eye sat in the center of his body, and she was waiting to see it. Unfortunately, the captain floated around interrupting her thoughts. "Hey, will you at least tell me what you're doing here!"  
  


Korra groaned and airbent him out of the way again. "Stop that arleady. We're trying to stop AUTO."  
  


"Stop AUTO?" The captain turned from indignant to terrified. "You can't stop AUTO, no one can stop AUTO! That little trash-bot tried and he didn't do anything but get himself crushed!"  
  


Tracer shook her head. "Poor lil' guy. He was such a hard-working bot."  
  


Korra nodded. Still scanning the bridge, she didn't see any movement on the ceiling. "Nothing yet. Tracer, you having any trouble back there?"  
  


Tracer shook her head, halfway through looking over the control panel. "I'll tell you when I figure out what I'm looking at." Neither one noticed a small panel slide open to Tracer's left, a small white robot rolling out in silence. The captain noticed, but the robot lifted a small articulator to its dome. The captain cowered and nodded, and the robot turned toward Tracer.  
  


Korra heard a yelp and a thud. She didn't hear the panel above her slide open as she recognized that Tracer was on the ground. As she airbent the robot out of the bridge, she didn't realize there was a stun gun coming at the back of her neck.  
  


As Korra collapsed to the floor, the captain watched as AUTO deactivated his stun gun. A pair of hovering lifter bots came in and hoisted the two women up. "**ADDING TWO PASSENGERS TO THE MANIFEST.**"  
  


The captain tried to smile as his fat shook with fear. "Yes, very good AUTO." As AUTO took his place behind the control panel, the captain watched as Korra and Tracer got carried out. Floating to the window, the captain looked down on the lido deck. There was a humanoid robot down there, trying to destroy the steward bots. Only he was being surrounded, one of the bots shooting out a stun gun. The humanoid robot screamed out, collapsing into a ring of stun guns. Another lifter bot floated in to carry him away. The captain spared one last look at AUTO. Until AUTO glared at him and he floated away.

* * *

Pharah fired another concussion rocket, watching as the hover chairs scattered. Again, the chairs righted themselves and kept coming on. Plasma bolts kept the sand flying everywhere, and even as Bolin brought new cover up it exploded. Mako kept throwing lightning bolts out, but only outside Reinhardt's shield. They'd almost lost it when Mako's lightning interfered with the particle density. "Tracer, Korra come in!"  
  


Another blast hit Reinhardt's shield. The blue barrier warped, trying to absorb and dissipate the energy hitting it. "I cannot take another blast Pharah," Reinhardt shouted. "Where are they!"  
  


Pharah gritted her teeth. "Tracer, Korra, Genji, any of you answer me!" Another blast. Reinhardt's shield dropped. "We can't hold, everyone fall back to the Humvees, now!"  
  


Mako turned and glared at Pharah. "We can't leave them!"  
  


"We have to or none of us will make it out," Pharah barked. "Get moving, now!" Launching herself into the air, Pharah roared and fired one of her actual rockets. Watching it slam in front of a trio of chairs, she prayed that if anyone had died? They didn't have to suffer. "Reinhardt, cover the rear. Bolin, throw up as many obstacles as you can. Mako, give me one mass discharge."  
  


"_What about the others,_" Bolin shouted in the radio. "_We're gonna leave them behind?_"  
  


"Of course not," Pharah growled as she landed. "We're going to figure out another way. Which we can't do if we're dead, now fall back!"

* * *

Korra blinked awake and winced. The second she opened her eyes she was under assault from bright pastel lights. Trying to turn her head, she realized the bright lights surrounded her wherever she tried to look. That was when she realized she was reclining. She tried to sit up, until realizing her hands were bound in place on two armrests. Korra realized she was sitting on a seat, one of the hoverchairs. She tried to look past to see where she was, but the holograms were too colorized. She couldn't see anything but ads for food and drinks from the Axiom's shops.  
  


"No, no no no!" Korra tried to pull herself free and couldn't. She couldn't even move her feet, all her limbs had been bound. Realization crept over her. If she couldn't escape?  
  


"No," she whispered, Asami's face flashing through her mind. "No, Asami, no!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Apologies this one took a little while, I'm trying to work on several other A is A stories as I wrap this one up. Sorry if you waited too long. Anywho, as always! Tell me what you like, what you don't like, and what you're hoping to see. Onward comrades!


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

* * *

Asami seethed at Pharah. "You left them behind."  
  


"I made a tactical withdraw," Pharah said, looking over the map she'd drawn in the sand. "I'd have left them behind if we'd gone back to the SGC."  
  


"Korra is still in that ship," Asami said. "If she'd succeeded we'd have known by now."  
  


"The Axiom is massive, we don't know if there are redundant systems. What we need to do right now is prepare to try again after a rest."  
  


Asami bit back her rage. Pharah was the experienced one here, not herself. She was right that this wasn't abandoning Korra too. That didn't stop Asami's emotions from raging at what happened.  
  


Michael was less forgiving. "What is wrong with you people? You failed, why are you still trying? Why won't you leave us alone?"  
  


"Like I said, our teammates are still in there." Pharah glared at Michael. "We're going to get them out."  
  


"So you're going to destroy my home to do it?" Michael glared at Pharah. "Because your team is inside you'll ruin our lives?"  
  


"What is your life," Asami barked. "You spent your life floating on a chair getting fat. Your home destroyed an entire city. Without that chair all you are is a baby that needs help to go to the bathroom."  
  


Michael tried to look indignant. "Well that's still my home!"  
  


Asami grabbed Michael's clothes. "You destroyed people's homes! This was a city and you all let it die! You were so busy getting fat and playing what you thought was a game you killed millions of people!"  
  


"Why are you angry at me?" Michael stared up at Asami, and she realized he was genuine. He didn't understand what was wrong. "I didn't do anything?"  
  


Brigitte pulled Asami away, but it didn't subdue the rage. There wasn't a human in front of Asami anymore. There was a fat slug of a man who appeared human. "Sorry, but any longer and I thought you'd try to kill him."  
  


"Give me a few more minutes listening to him." Asami glared at Michael, Beepsy hovering near his human trying to figure out what to do. "How can he think what we're doing isn't the right thing?"  
  


"You're asking him to upend his entire worldview and accept a new reality." Brigitte shook her head. "Don't you think you're asking a lot?"  
  


Asami shook her head. "It happened to me. He can handle a little hurt too."  
  


"He's not you," Brigitte said. Her tone was firm as she faced Asami. "My father always told me to be direct, so I'll be direct. Your judgement is being colored because you don't know what happened to Korra right now."  
  


Asami took a long breath. "You're right. You're right, I am worried about Korra. I'm worried that she's..."  
  


Brigitte gripped Asami's shoulder. "She is not dead. Her avatar state would have activated, and she would have gotten Tracer and Genji out." She smiled at Asami. "You need to give her time. We've seen the situations you've all been in. If Korra could survive Mercury poisoning, she can figure a way off the Axiom."  
  


Asami nodded, watching the midday sun glare down on the Axiom. "Let's hope so."

* * *

Korra had given up struggling at this point. There was no hope of breaking through the bindings. The metal was too refined, and she could only move her hands and fingers. It didn't help that the constant advertisements kept playing in her ears. She could feel the chair moving, but she couldn't see where it was going. She at least knew she was still inside the Axiom, the temperature was too nice and there was no sand in her eyes.  
  


Accepting that for now there was no way to escape, she looked over the ads. Food, recreation, and all from the comfort of your hoverchair. That's when she noticed it. The limited-time "BURGER IN A CUP". She grinned.  
  


Shutting her eyes and reaching out, she could feel the water around her. Small amounts, but enough. Using her fingers she grabbed enough to start with. Ignoring the advertisments blaring about B-N-L's products, she focused. She sent the water into the bindings and waited.  
  


Liquids always expand when frozen, and all the liquid she had was now wedged into the right binding.  
  


The binding fizzled and snapped. Korra ripped her arm free and ignored the scratches. Grabbing more liquid she froze the binding on her other arm. Ignoring the blaring on the chair about a malfunction, she freed her legs. Jumping out, she saw that she was deep in the Axiom. Apartments, malls, restaurants, and all filled with fat passengers ignoring everything around them.  
  


"Alright you fat jerks," Korra grumbled, shutting her eyes. "Time to see reality."  
  


Her eyes ripped open pure white. As fire wrapped around her every liquid nearby fell to her command. Passengers that were happy sipping their dinner looked up and followed their drinks. They gasped and broke free of the ads. Before them was something they'd never seen before: A healthy human being.  
  


A rumbling. From underneath the floor, a parade of stones shot up. The passengers screamed, floating away as a new parade of steward bots appeared. Unable to comprehend what was before them, they lined up and repeated, "Halt!"  
  


Korra cut through them with a jet of water. She sliced them in half, and the ones that weren't destroyed she crushed with stones. Floating above the surface of the Axiom, she watched with white eyes as she wrought vengeance. The tortured earth ripped the Axiom apart. The waters that were once Lake Michigan struck down the steward bots. Fire and slicing air threw aside any resistance. The Axiom itself shook.  
  


Up on the bridge, AUTO tried to monitor the situation. The robot brain tried to think in a logical routine about it. There was a danger aboard the Axiom. The danger was a passenger. He wasn't allowed to hurt passengers. His duty was to protect the passengers from all threats. This passenger was a threat. His duty was to protect passengers from threats.  
  


The captain was less logical. He watched on the monitors as the woman floated through the corridors without a chair. Using fire and water and the air itself to tear apart his ship. He whimpered as the woman destroyed one of the holo-billboards by chucking a rock through it.  
  


Passengers who endangered other passengers require pacification. If earlier stewards could not pacify, send more stewards.  
  


Several passengers went flying out of their chairs from a blast of wind. The woman passed them by, ignoring their screams and flailing attempts to flee. He watched as one of the female passengers wailed while the floating woman hovered over her. It was like watching an infant cry out in terror.  
  


Additional stewards fail to incapacitate passenger. Number of stewards low. Passengers must not be harmed.  
  


The woman reached the lido deck. The water in the pool shuddered and rose. Turned into a spinning disc, she started slicing apart the structure of the ship. The metal screamed as she cut the deck apart, threatening to separate the bow from the hull.  
  


Ships superstructure damaged by passenger. Request to reclassify passenger as threat. Passenger reclassification only approved by captain's orders. AUTO spun at the captain. "**REQUEST PERMISSION TO RECLASSIFY PASSENGER CLASSIFICATION.**"  
  


The captain looked up, shocked. "What? What do you mean reclassify-" The captain froze as AUTO activated his stun gun. "Yes! Yes, passenger can be reclassified!"  
  


Korra noticed that the steward bots rushing at her were firing plasma bolts. Too little, too late. She sent her water slicing through them than barricaded the way into the lido deck with boulders. Looking up at the bridge, she launched herself at the bridge.  
  


AUTO glared at Korra, but before he could retreat Korra jammed his aperture with ice. Floating over, Korra glared into AUTO's red eye with her burning whites. AUTO couldn't process what he was seeing, there was no reference for this. AUTO could only watch as Korra floated up and turned him off.  
  


The captain shuddered as Korra turned to him. "Where are Tracer and Genji?" Her voice distorted, like there was more than one person speaking. "Where are the others I came here with?"  
  


The captain yelped and hovered to the control panel. Trying to ignore the still swirling elements in his bridge, he searched the manifest. "I can only find one of them, I swear I can only find one!"  
  


"Bring her here."  
  


The captain tapped at the console, and in two minutes Korra appeared in the bridge elevator. Sipping on a Burger in a Cup, she waved at Korra. "Took you long enough." Korra iced the restraints and set Tracer free. "That's better. Alright, where's Genji?" The captain said nothing. "Ugh. Genji, this is tracer, come in?"  
  


"_Tracer, I can hear you. I'm in the robot repair bay. AUTO did not know what to make of me it seems._"  
  


"Got it, I'll have the captain get you escorted up here. You okay?"  
  


"_This is the second time I've gone with you and found myself disabled. Next time I will stay with Pharah._"  
  


Tracer laughed. "Fair enough luv." Looking over the console, she grinned. "Where's the emergency beacon captain?"

* * *

One of the staff looked up. "Mr. Xanatos sir, we have a radio beacon in the Chicago city limits. It's transmitting-"  
  


"Repeating bursts. Three short, three long, three short." Xanatos grinned. "Alert Mr. Eagle, tell him Chicago requires immediate assistance."  
  


Ft. Meade sprung to life, soldiers rushing for waiting helicopters. As a gargantuan convoy of 7-ton trucks loaded up with supplies a blue feather Muppet watched over all. Sam the Eagle observed everything, nodding at the proper times and correct actions he saw.   
  


"Sir." Sam looked up at the colonel saluting him. "My men are ready to move on your orders sir."  
  


"Very good then colonel," Sam said, walking to one of the waiting choppers. "I hope your men are ready."  
  


"For anything sir," the colonel said. "Mr. Xanatos already informed us that we should prepare for any possibility."  
  


"As well you should be colonel," Sam said. "It is, after all, the American way!" Then Sam tried and failed three times to get aboard the chopper. Groaning, he turned to the colonel. "Can you give me a hand here?"

* * *

"_Oi, this is the new captain of the Axiom calling Pharah, over?_"  
  


The team laughed and cheered as Pharah radioed back. "Pharah to Tracer, read you Lima-Charlie. What's your situation?"  
  


"_Three for three here. We sent the distress signal out, now we have to figure out to stop Xanatos from making use of this ship._"  
  


Asami gave Pharah a look that screamed, "KORRA?!" "Tracer, status of Korra and Genji?"  
  


"_Both are five-by_," Tracer radioed. "_Korra's trying to destroy the ship, but all she can do is slice it apart with water jets._"  
  


"What about the passengers?"  
  


"_Right, knew I forgot something._" A second later there was a blaring siren. "_There we go. Passengers are being evacuated now. Oh, there's even a nice holographic readout showing the count._"  
  


"We'll be there in twenty, Pharah out." Cutting the radio, she turned to the team. "Everyone who can, load up. Reinhardt?" She glared at Michael. "Keep an eye on things here."  
  


The drive through the dunes was rough, but for all the faults the Humvee could at least get from point A to B with a good driver. Rolling up on the Axiom, Pharah saw the land around it filled with white and red. Hundreds, thousands of passengers realizing for the first time there was an outside world. They looked around trying to figure out what was going on, where they were, and why the games had stopped.  
  


Bolin whistled. "So what do we do?"  
  


Pharah shook her head. Metal screamed, and she saw part of the bridge falling off. Korra was working, but there were still remains. Xanatos could pick it over and take what he wanted by making a giant jigsaw out of it. "Bolin, how hot can you get your lava?"  
  


Bolin shrugged. "Dunno, never had a reason to make it hotter.”  
  


"Well I need you to get it hot," Pharah said. "So hot it can destroy the guts of the ship. We can't let Xanatos get his hands on any of the electronics inside."  
  


Bolin pulled a double-take. "You want me to fill the entire ship with lava?"  
  


"No, I want a lake of lava. One giant lake, ready for Korra to thrown the pieces into." Pharah pointed to what was Lake Michigan. "A great lake of lava. Can you do it Bolin?" Bolin nodded, sprinting to the lakebed. "The rest of you, get these people organized. I want them kept aside. If they try to fight..." Pharah shook her head. Neutralize them if you can. Tracer, this is Pharah."  
  


It took time for Bolin to make the lava. When he finished, well it wasn't quite a lake but Pharah felt it would make do. Looking up, she saw Korra hovering over the ship. Surrounded by swirling blades of water.  
  


The first cut the bow of the ship, metal groaning as it fell forward into the lava. It didn't sink, at least not all the way. It was what Pharah wanted though. She didn't need the exterior of the ship to melt away, this world already had space travel. What she needed was for the electronic guts inside to melt. "Bolin, can you coat it in lava?"  
  


Bolin swept the bow in liquid rock. He covered the front of it until it glowed red. Pharah could already see inside. She could see circuit boards melting as the plastic burned. Even at a distance, she could pick up the acrid stink. Korra cut away more of the ship, and Bolin brought up more lava. Some of the cuts drew forth more water, and Korra was only too willing to use it. The Axiom drained the lake, now the lake was taking it's overdue vengeance.  
  


Section by section, piece by piece. As the robots scurried out the passengers watched in horror. The cried out as the lido deck went falling into the lava, and wept as the B-N-L logo scorched black. Pharah watched with pity. These weren't the earlier passengers aboard the Axiom who made their choices. These were babies, infants that had to learn everything. How to walk, talk, interact with the world. Who had to relearn eating solid food and what it meant to live. She saw Mercy staring at all of them with apprehension. Pharah didn't doubt that she was running through all the health problems. Heart disease, respiratory illness, muscular degeneration, and those were the obvious cases. There was nothing they could do though. Xanatos wanted the Axiom? He'd get the Axiom. Along with everything inside it.  
  


Asami was more focused on Korra. She knew the Avatar state was a dangerous part of being the Avatar. It could create islands, destroy cities, turn nature itself against mankind. The Axiom, designed to survive the rigors of space, was nothing to Korra. As pieces of the ship kept droping, Bolin kept lavabending. The tech inside was useless. Nothing any of the robots tried before Korra airbent them away could save the ship. They watched like the passengers, but Pharah saw they didn't quite understand the same way. They saw their purpose melting away, their use now in question. If there was no Axiom, what happened to the crew of it?  
  


Michael floated up. "Why? Why are you doing this? We weren't hurting anyone, why did you have to do this?"  
  


Pharah didn't even look at Michael. "You weren't hurting anyone? Tell that to Chicago."

* * *

Sam shook his head looking out at the ruins of Chicago. Lake Michigan a puddle, and the Chicago skyline a skyscraping landfill. A great American city left to rot.  
  


"_Sir,_" the pilot said over the intercom. "_I've got a massive heat dissipation about two klicks to the north._"  
  


"That should be them," Sam said. "Pilot, see to putting us down on the lakebed."  
  


Sam saw the leader of the teams waiting, a woman wearing blue armor and carrying a rocket launcher. Behind her, the team. Behind them, a mass of obese people in red jumpsuits with robots scurrying between them. "Are you the team leader?"  
  


"I am," she said. "Tell Mr. Xanatos that our heaviest team member went overboard, destroyed the Axiom in a flare up. We couldn't stop it."  
  


"Of course, we completely understand." Sam looked over the red-hot sections of the Axiom, laying half-buried in the sand. "Were any of the passengers hurt?"  
  


Pharah shook her head. "None of them. We're sorry we couldn't do more."  
  


"It's not your fault, no one could've known this would happen." The rest of the choppers came in, Sam noticing the men leaning out and staring at the passengers. "If you'll excuse me, I have things to organize here."  
  


"One thing sir," Pharah said. "The passengers, how will they be treated?”  
  


"As they should be," Sam said. "They are innocent victims, they didn't ask for any of this."  
  


Pharah nodded. "Our team doctor noted that they'll need to be put on a specialized diet to ensure they don't experience further health complications."  
  


"We'll see to it," Sam said as the soldiers scattered. "After all, taking care of disaster survivors is the American way!"  
  


Pharah nodded. "We need to return to our headquarters. Are you able to handle this from here?"  
  


"We can." Sam held out his wing. "Thank you for your help in saving Chicago." A shake later, and the team had vanished in flashes of light.  
  


"Holy cow," the colonel said. "Sir, sir what happened to'em?"  
  


"They did their jobs, now we must do ours." Sam looked out over the piles of fat that were now his responsibility. "With any luck we can get something done too."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

* * *

Gen. Hammond nodded as Pharah wrapped up her AAR. "So Mr. Xanatos will not be able to utilize the technologies within the Axiom then?"

"All parts of the ship that could not be destroyed were coated in lava sir." Pharah nodded to Korra. "We wouldn't have had any chance without MV-3."

Gen. Hammond smiled. "Capt. Campbell's instructions on the matter were quite clear. Stop the further acquisition of advanced technologies by Mr. Xanatos. I'd say you carried this out to the letter."

"Not quite sir," Pharah said. "There were still robots that Mr. Xanatos could reverse-engineer."

"Capt. Campbell advised that the robots you're talking about are less of a threat than Coyote." Gen. Hammond leaned back. "Both your teams did excellent work, well done."

"Thanks sir," Korra said. stretching out. "So, need us for anything else?"

Gen. Hammond chuckeld. "Dr. Frasier asked if you could stop by, she wants to see about arranging a test on your vital signs when you meditate. As for you captain, your team is free to go when you please."

Both women left the room, Korra tapping Pharah on the shoulder with her fist. "So, think Xanatos is kicking his own butt right now?"

Pharah shook her head, but she didn't lose her smile. "Men like him have more than enough money to carry on. I'd say everything broke even for him."

"I'll take that." Korra sighed as the two came up to the elevator. "That doesn't have to be our future right?"

"That's up to your world," Pharah said. "You've got a few years before you get to the point that their Detroit is in. Once you all figure out what you can make do with and without, you'll wind up having your own problems."

Korra sighed. "Wish someone had told me balance isn't so easy to find."

Pharah shrugged. "All systems fall out of balance. Herbivores eat too much of their food, they don't have enough to eat. They get sickly, carnivores eat the weak. The herd shrinks, the plants grow back. Balance is bigger than people think it is."

Korra thought for a moment. "Is that a science thing?"

"Biology," Pharah said, walking into the open elevator. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that I should start studying," she said. "Think Twilight can give me a hand?"

Pharah grinned. "The Avatar with knowledge of science? Kane won't stand a chance."

* * *

Abraham Kane sat quiet in the back of the van. He'd been stuck underground for days, not tortured but given no information. At least until the door to his cell opened hours ago and he'd gotten thrown into the back of a van. At least, until five seconds ago when the van came to a stop.

The doors opened, and two guards in Xanatos uniforms motioned for him to get out. Nodding, Kane followed the pair into an underground parking garage. He could tell the facility was massive from the parking garage alone.

It was a twenty minute walk through winding, bleak metal corridors. He was finally taken to a small office and sat down in a chair. He sat across from a small desk in a comfortable leather chair. The other behind the desk  was turned away. "So, no mystery why I'm here right now."

"Indeed," Xanatos said, spinning his chair around. "Sorry, but I always wanted to do that."

"Well congratulations." Kane glared at the man. "So, feel like a big man? You destroyed a company in a market you aren't even involved in. That doesn't even have half the total asset value of a fraction of your manufacturing efforts."

"Four-sevenths actually," Xanatos said, standing up. "Care to take a walk? It's not like you have anything better to do."

Kane nodded. "I suppose I have you to thank for that visit by the FBI too. We both know those charges are bogus, I may be cutthroat but all my business decisions are above board."

"Oh I know they are," Xanatos said. " Personally ,  I feel your vision for Detroit Deluxe  is inspired . A world where no one can do anything without the right people knowing about it. Your plan was to start with a few developments, am I right? Small planned communities where everyone felt safe?"

"Until you sent those lunatics after me." Kane walked next to Xanatos, glaring at the older CEO. "They shot at my house, at my daughter."

"They shot near your daughter," Xanatos said. "You saw how they acted. They're too professional to have missed. They were giving you an out."

"Look, we both know you want something from me." Kane stepped in front of Xanatos and glared. "What's the world's most powerful man want with a security company from Detroit?"

Xanatos smiled and kept walking. "Right now your company has  just suffered a financial catastrophe. Your R&D is rubble, your records destroyed, and your reputation in tatters." He turned and smiled at Kane. "You need a partner."

"A partner," Kane repeated. "You mean you buy out control from under me."

"Only fifty-one percent," Xanatos said, almost like he was talking about the score of a ballgame. "For all intents and purposes I'll allow you to run the company as you want. What I need is for you to take on a side-project for me. In return, not only will your company receive a mass influx of capital but the charges will disappear."

Kane sneered. "My fairy godmother. Let's say I do agree to this, what exactly is this project?"

"Those people who kidnapped you think I have an interest in robotics. Well, they aren't wrong." Stopping at a door, Xanatos punched in the code to move through. "Their mistake was thinking that I cared about consumer robotics." Kane looked around as a massive bay, dozens of robots in various states of  disassembly . He'd never seen bots like these before, but they all had a distinct "B-N-L" on them. "Robots can't buy, they can't sell. They take away jobs, they can't propose new ideas that can make money. In short, I don't want robots that will destroy the economy."

"That means you want another kind of robot," Kane said. "One that requires my expertise. Which makes me wonder why you didn't go to San Fransokyo. They're the robotics experts, my specialty is in security."

"That's true, but San Fransokyo is out of my comfort zone. As of now, you're the best thing I have access to. Speaking frank, you're also far more stable than the ones I reached out to. A wife, a daughter, I admit I see a bit of myself in you."

"I'm touched." Kane waited as Xanatos stopped at another door. He noticed the security on this one was more intense, requiring a code, a keycard, even biometrics. "Listen, if I take this one there's one rule I want understood. My wife and daughter are not wrapped up in this. If you want to come after me, that's fine. If you go after them? I don't care how powerful and rich you think you are. I will make you pay."

"I can respect that," Xanatos said, as the door slid open with a hiss. "That's the personality I'm counting on."

As Kane followed, Xanatos turned on a series of breakers. They stood in a massive bay, empty except for a cloth in the center. Something round was underneath, covering an object sitting at about chest height. "Tell me, have you ever heard of Rockwell?"

"That Cold War ghost story?" Kane nodded. "It's a myth, they sat the US government had an accident, fired a nuke on a fishing town in Maine."

Xanatos grinned as he walked up to the cloth. "My father used to fish outside of Rockwell."

Kane nodded, the implications washing over him. "So, there was a nuclear accident. How'd they cover it up?"

"Simple, national security. If you're afraid of communists, you listen when the government said there was never a town of Rockwell. Especially if you didn't want to become a communist yourself."

Kane nodded. "So this  is connected to what happened?"

Xanatos patted the object. "This is the reason for what happened."

"The reason...It wasn't an accident." Kane stepped forward. "What is it?" Xanatos' grin widened as he pulled the sheet away.

It was a head, at least a simplified version of one. Two eyes shut by metal irises, and a rudimentary mouth. "Amazing," Kane whispered, running his hands over it. "Where'd you find it?"

"Ground zero."

Kane froze. "What? That's impossible, this was a nuke right? Nothing survives at ground zero of a nuke."

"Nothing of this earth."

Kane's jaw slackened. "Nothing..." He backed away from the head. "You're sure you still want me to work on this?"

Xanatos patted the head. "Unless you want to try and rebuild your company on your own."

Kane glared at Xanatos, and held out his hand. "Remember my rule."

The irises on the head opened enough to observe the two men shake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! That's right, we're still pressing on. As always, if you have any comments feel free to add them on what you like, dislike, and so on. Stay tuned, next up is Rainbow's first solo story!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all! Yes, once again we dive into the world of Disney Villains Victorious: Gridlocked. Remember, I can't write a good story without feedback. What you like, what you think needs work, or whatever strikes your fancy, comment below!
> 
> Also, I'm still looking for subject matter experts on RWBY. If you know it, I need to know it.


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